LEADER OF THE HOUSE

Independent Commission on Banking

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Leader of the House if he will take steps to ensure a debate on the interim findings of the Independent Commission on Banking after 11 April 2011.

George Young: I have no plans to provide time for a debate on this subject. As the Chancellor has previously stated, the Government are not going to pre-empt in any way the conclusions that the Independent Commission on Banking may come to in its final report or the Government’s response.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Public Inquiries

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the cost to his Department was of public inquiries in each of the last 10 years.

Owen Paterson: The four Northern Ireland public inquiries established by the previous Government have cost a total of £301.1 million over the last 10 years.
	The Bloody Sunday Inquiry closed in June 2010 and cost a total of £191.5 million. The Billy Wright Inquiry closed in September 2010 and cost £30.5 million. The Robert Hamill Inquiry closed in February 2011 and cost £33.0 million. The Rosemary Nelson Inquiry has cost £46.1 million to date. Detailed costs relating to the Bloody Sunday and Billy Wright Inquiries, broken down by year, are available on the Northern Ireland Office website:
	www.nio.gov.uk

Victims Support

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many meetings he has had with victims' representatives since his appointment.

Owen Paterson: I have had 23 formal meetings with a range of victims' groups and other victims' representatives from across the community in Northern Ireland, as well as groups representing victims in Great Britain since my appointment.
	The Minister of State has also had a similar number of such meetings since his appointment.

JUSTICE

Bribery Act 2010

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Orpington (Joseph Johnson) of 15 February 2011, Official Report, columns 750-1W, on what date he expects (a) guidance on the implementation of the Bribery Act 2010 to be published and (b) the Bribery Act 2010 to be implemented.

Jonathan Djanogly: I refer the hon. Member to the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice’s written ministerial statement of 30 March 2011, Official Report, column 21WS.

Courts: Closures

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  what steps he is taking to ensure that the work of the family courts is not affected by the closure of family court venues;
	(2)  whether family court proceedings will be kept separate from proceedings on criminal cases following the completion of planned court closures in Wales and England;

Jonathan Djanogly: HMCS will carefully manage the transfer of workload and administration of cases using the detailed implementation plans that are being developed for each court that is closing.
	Over recent years HMCS has been pursuing a Unified Family Court policy which has taken the majority of Family Proceedings Court hearings out of magistrates courts buildings and into the county courts. The court estate already contains a number of co-located courts that include both magistrates and county courts and Crown and county courts and to a smaller extent all three. There will be some additional co-location of criminal and family jurisdictions in magistrates and county courts as a result of court closures. However, there are operational advantages to co-location and so long as suitable arrangements are made, such as segregated facilities or separate days for family and criminal matters, HMCS will seek to increase the flexibility of court buildings and provide multi-jurisdictional services.

Domestic Violence

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  what recent assessment he has made of the outcomes of the Integrated Domestic Abuse Programme; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what recent estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of the Integrated Domestic Abuse Programme; and if he will make a statement.

Crispin Blunt: Positive shifts in attitudes and beliefs are made by participants over the course of the Integrated Domestic Abuse Programme, and research is planned to look at the impact of perpetrator programmes on reoffending rates.
	The funding for the supervision of offenders and the delivery of programmes in the community is part of the general grant given to probation trusts. The costs will vary and depend on a number of factors including the risk presented by the individual, the level of supervision required, and the arrangements for delivery in the particular area. It is not possible to accurately disaggregate the cost of this work. However, work is in hand to ensure that all offender services delivered in the community are properly specified and costed so that commissioners can ensure resources are targeted effectively to protect the public and reduce reoffending.

Domestic Violence

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent assessment has been made of the effectiveness of restorative justice in cases of domestic violence; and if he will make a statement.

Crispin Blunt: The use of restorative justice conferencing for domestic abuse cases is contentious as it has implications for the safety of victims. Current guidelines do not encourage this approach in domestic violence cases, with victim-offender mediation pointing to the risks for victims.
	An alternative approach is the Integrated Domestic Abuse Programme (IDAP), a programme for convicted offenders aimed at tackling physical and psychological domestic abuse, and linked behaviour issues such as control and misuse of power. It also provides support for victims and their families and, where appropriate, the victim may play a role in demonstrating the impact and consequences of the abuse as part of an offender's rehabilitation.
	More generally, the Ministry of Justice assessment of general restorative justice evidence suggests that restorative justice can, in appropriate cases, have a positive impact on the offender's likelihood of re-offending in the future as well as providing more positive outcomes for victims. As set out in the recent MoJ Green Paper on "Breaking the Cycle", we are committed to increasing the range and availability of restorative justice approaches and to give victims a greater chance of seeking reparation for the crimes committed against them. We are looking at how we can make restorative justice a fundamental part of the sentencing process.

Prison Service: Pay

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 16 February 2011, Official Report, column 796W, on the Prison Service: ICT, whether the Director of Corporate Affairs of HM Prison Service received a bonus in respect of performance in 1999-2000 (a) in that year and (b) subsequently.

Crispin Blunt: Records from the Home Office Pay Service (HOPS) date back to July 2001 and there is no indication of a bonus payment in respect of performance made to the Director of Corporate Affairs since July 2001.

Prisons: Private Sector

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 3 March 2011, Official Report, column 577W, on prisoners, how many projects in prisons run by the private sector remunerate prisoners for work they do; and how many prisoners are participating in each such project.

Crispin Blunt: Prisoner remuneration for work is devolved to governors, and in the private estate, to directors of prisons. Central records of local pay scales and, for the private sector, the amount of prisoners involved in specific initiatives are not kept and could be gained only at disproportionate cost.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Afghanistan: Females

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will provide support to the work of (a) Malalai Joya and (b) other Afghan human rights activists in publicising the situation of women in Afghanistan; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: We continue to work closely with a wide range of Afghan women’s rights advocates to improve the status of women in Afghanistan through funding and capacity building support. Malalai Joya visited the UK in October 2008 to discuss human rights with UK Government officials.

British Nationals Abroad: Homicide

Jackie Doyle-Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will establish in his Department a specialist team to support those bereaved by homicides of UK nationals overseas.

Jeremy Browne: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has no plans to establish a specialist team to support those bereaved by homicides of UK nationals overseas and intends to continue to provide support through its existing country casework teams. Country casework teams work closely with other organisations such as the Victim Support National Homicide Service, and I have met non-governmental organisations such as Support After Murder and Manslaughter Abroad and Missing Abroad to ensure that our support meets the needs of bereaved families.

Public Bodies Reform Programme

Tessa Jowell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  what estimate his Department has made of the level of savings which will accrue from the abolition of the Government Hospitality Advisory Committee on the Purchase of Wine;
	(2)  what estimate his Department has made of the level of savings which will accrue from the abolition of the Diplomatic Service Appeals Board;
	(3)  what estimate his Department has made of the level of savings which will accrue from the abolition of the Caribbean Board;
	(4)  what estimate his Department has made of the level of savings which will accrue from the change in function of the UK-India Round Table;
	(5)  what estimate his Department has made of the level of savings which will accrue from the change in function of the Foreign Compensation Commission.

David Lidington: On 16 March 2011, Official Report, column 9-10WS, the Minister for the Cabinet Office issued a written ministerial statement updating Parliament on progress on public bodies reform. That statement also announced that departments estimate cumulative administrative savings of at least £2.6 billion will flow from public bodies over the spending review period. I estimate net overall administrative savings from the change in function of the UK-India Round Table over the spending review period of £80,000.
	The Foreign Compensation Commission has not changed its function. While it is anticipated that the reform process will generate efficiencies or cost savings, at the current time no estimate of the potential level of either has been made.
	The Government Hospitality Advisory Committee on the Purchase of Wines is no longer a non-departmental public body and its members did not receive any salary for their role.
	The Diplomatic Service Appeals Board has been formally wound up and only incurred costs when it heard a case. Each case costs approximately £6,000 and we estimate on average we had one case per year.
	The abolished Caribbean Board did not incur any costs over the past two years. There was no budget planned for it, and therefore its abolition did not generate any savings.

League of Arab States

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on what occasions (a) Ministers and (b) officials in his Department have been in contact with (i) Arab League officials and (ii) the Secretary-General of the League of Arab States since the beginning of 2011.

William Hague: Both officials and Ministers are in regular contact with the Arab League. The Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Alistair Burt) spoke to Amr Moussa on 22 March 2011. My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister spoke to him on 21 March 2011 and I spoke to him most recently on 16, 19 and 26 March 2011.

Mumbai: Terrorism

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps his Department has taken to provide compensation to British nationals involved in the Mumbai terrorist attacks in 2008.

Henry Bellingham: Lead responsibility for ensuring provision of support services and compensation to victims of violent crime rests with the Ministry of Justice.
	Previous proposals for compensating victims of terrorism overseas are being considered alongside a review of the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme and wider victims’ services by the Ministry of Justice.

Somalia: Piracy

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has assessed the merits of seeking international agreement to declare the sea off the coast of Somalia a conflict zone.

Henry Bellingham: Somali pirates are engaged in the criminal act of piracy as defined by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. The UK does not regard the operation of pirates off the coast of Somalia as meeting the criteria for an armed conflict. Naval forces in the region are conducting law enforcement operations to take robust action against pirates, including detention and prosecution of pirates and the seizure and disposal of piratical equipment in accordance with the requirements of international law, including customary international law of the sea and the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.
	The area remains high risk to merchant shipping and the Government work closely with international partners and the international shipping industry to ensure this is as widely understood as possible and necessary precautions are taken. On 16 December 2010, the Lloyd’s Joint War Committee added the Indian Ocean/Arabian Sea/Gulf of Aden/Gulf of Oman/Southern Red Sea to the Hull War, Strikes, Terrorism and Related Perils Listed Areas. This increases the insurance requirement for all merchant shipping transiting this area. Industry agreed Best Management Practice has also defined the region as a high risk area, recommending strongly the implementation of increased protection measures for all ships transiting it. In February 2011, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office changed its travel advice to advise against all but essential travel in the area by yacht and leisure craft.

Somalia: Piracy

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs for what reason he announced that additional funding would be provided to tackle piracy by issuing a press release rather than in a written ministerial statement or in a written answer to a parliamentary question.

Henry Bellingham: holding answer 28 March 2011
	The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), referred at “The Times Summit” on Africa on 22 March to the Government’s provision of £6 million of support during this year for continued building-up of the counter-piracy capacity of regional countries in the Indian Ocean area. This implements the Government’s existing counter-piracy assistance policy as outlined in my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Morecambe and Lunesdale (David Morris) on 5 July 2010, Official Report, column 31W. The cumulative total of £6 million represents a total of 12 separate piracy-related projects taken forward recently in Kenya, the Seychelles and in Somalia itself, including support for courts, prisons, police and coastguard. One project related to the gift of an advanced surveillance camera to the Seychelles coastguard, which was handed over on 24 March and enables more effective surveillance of pirate activity and now provides evidence-standard photography for use in prosecutions. Collectively this represents an important reaffirmation of the UK’s commitment to provide comprehensive political, military and capacity building support to our partners in the region in their fight against piracy. I will write to the right hon. Member with more details of these projects, and will place a copy in the Library of the House, along with a copy of the Secretary of State’s speech on Africa.

Yemen: Politics and Government

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the situation in Yemen; and if he will make a statement.

William Hague: The situation in Yemen is fragile and serious. Over 50 protestors were killed and hundreds wounded in Sana'a on 18 March. In a statement on the same day I expressed my utter condemnation of violence and called for those responsible immediately to cease this brutal reaction to protests and to be held accountable for their actions. Such violence undermines the opportunities for dialogue between all parties in Yemen. The subsequent declaration of a state of emergency does not absolve the Government of Yemen.
	In response to the increase in violence, a number of senior Yemeni ministers, ambassadors and military figures have resigned, expressed their support for the protestors and called for an early and peaceful transition of power.
	The Government of Yemen must take urgent action to build trust with the opposition and with the protesters. Without this trust, no agreement can be reached. It is vital that President Saleh and the opposition agree on a politically inclusive and democratic process and an orderly transition to find a lasting settlement.
	Our travel advice currently advises against all travel to Yemen and recommends that all British nationals in Yemen leave now by commercial means.

DEFENCE

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many RAF aircraft movements there were between Camp Bastion and Kandahar Airbase for each type of aircraft in each of the last 12 months; what cargo was shipped in each such case; and what the cost to the public purse was of such movements in each such month.

Nick Harvey: Information on numbers of RAF helicopter movements per month and what freight was shipped on each such air movement between Bastion Airfield and Kandahar is not held.
	Information on numbers of RAF fixed wing aircraft movements per month and what freight was shipped on each such air movement between Bastion Airfield and Kandahar Airfield prior to September 2010 is not held.
	The numbers of movements of RAF fixed wing aircraft between Bastion Airfield and Kandahar Airfield for each month since September 2010 is as follows:
	
		
			  Number of RAF fixed wing aircraft movements 
			 September 2010 308 
			 October 2010 277 
			 November 2010 222 
			 December 2010 247 
			 January 2011 242 
			 February 2011 195 
		
	
	The average total monthly marginal cost of these moves was £310,000.
	Marginal cost is cost which would not have been incurred had the moves not occurred, the majority of which is the cost of fuel.
	Information on what freight was shipped on each such RAF fixed wing air movement between Bastion Airfield and Kandahar Airfield from September 2010 is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether any helicopters and their crews deployed in Afghanistan will be redeployed as part of Operation Odyssey Dawn; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Harvey: There are currently no plans to redeploy UK helicopters or their crews from Afghanistan to support operations in Libya.

Armed Forces: Housing

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will take steps to ensure that the level of the food and incidentals allowance to which military personnel who are required to live in private rented accommodation because of lack of accommodation within military bases are entitled to is maintained.

Andrew Robathan: holding answer 28 March 2011
	The food and incidentals allowance (FIA) is being continued but will be reduced from £12.41 to £8.50 per day from 1 May 2011. This is largely as a result of basing the estimated cost of the ‘food basket’, which is used to fix the value of FIA, more closely on prices experienced across the UK.

Departmental Theft

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 24 March 2011, Official Report, column 1227W, on departmental theft, whether he has taken steps to ensure that equipment with a military use stolen from his Department does not fall into enemy hands.

Andrew Robathan: All allegations of theft of military equipment are carefully examined and where appropriate the necessary resources, including the Ministry of Defence police, are allocated to investigate the loss, and wherever possible recover the equipment.
	The Ministry of Defence has recently set up a Defence Crime Board to provide strategic direction and initiatives aimed at combating the harm done to Defence by crime.

Departmental Theft

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 24 March 2011, Official Report, column 1227W, on departmental theft, from which of his Department's sites items of a monetary value of £100 or more have been taken without authorisation since his appointment.

Andrew Robathan: Information regarding the locations of alleged thefts of departmental property recorded on the Ministry of Defence Police crime database, over the value of £100 within the UK, will be placed in the Library of the House.

Departmental Theft

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 24 March 2011, Official Report, column 1227W, on departmental theft, from which site or sites the money intended as compensation was taken; what sums were to be disbursed from this money; and who the intended recipients of such compensation were.

Andrew Robathan: Three Ministry of Defence (MOD) cheques for compensation-related matters were dispatched to a non-MOD site in London. The cheques were for £60,000, £16,500 and £8,000. I am not able to identify the location of the offence, nor the degree of losses, as the investigation is ongoing. Nor am I able to identify the intended recipients for privacy and Data Protection reasons. However, I can confirm that neither the intended recipients nor the MOD has suffered a financial loss as a consequence.

HMS Ark Royal

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department expects to save through the decommissioning of HMS Ark Royal in each financial year until 2020.

Peter Luff: Savings from the withdrawal from service of HMS Ark Royal are estimated at £10 million in financial year 2011-12, £25 million in 2012-13, £35 million in 2013-14, £35 million in 2014-15 and broadly £30 million each year thereafter.

HMS Illustrious

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  when HMS Illustrious is due to return to service;
	(2)  on what date HMS Illustrious was taken out of service.

Peter Luff: HMS Illustrious left operational service in January 2010, and entered her docking period in Rosyth in March 2010. She is scheduled to return to operational service in spring 2012, to assume her landing platform helicopter role.

Navy

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has for future deployment of the Royal Navy in (a) collaborative operations and (b) core responsibilities.

Nick Harvey: It is not our policy to provide details of future deployments as to do so would, or would be likely to, prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the armed forces.

Operation Ellamy

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service personnel have participated in Operation Ellamy to date.

Nick Harvey: holding answer 30 March 2011
	As at 29 March 2011, the number of service personnel participating in Operation Ellamy overseas was 1,400, rounded to the nearest 100.
	The precise number of personnel participating in Operation Ellamy will fluctuate on a daily basis for a variety of reasons, including the roulement of forces, visits and a range of other factors. We do not, therefore, publish specific figures for personnel deployed in support of operations.

Operation Ellamy

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what equipment and capabilities from (a) the Royal Navy, (b) the Royal Air Force and (c) the Army have been deployed in Operation Ellamy.

Nick Harvey: holding answer 30 March 2011
	The Royal Navy has deployed Type 22 and Type 23 Frigates (HMS Cumberland and HMS Westminster respectively), with a Royal Marine Fleet Standby Rifle Troop onboard. A Trafalgar Class submarine has also been deployed.
	The Royal Air Force has deployed a Nimrod R1, Sentinel reconnaissance aircraft and the E3D Sentry Airborne Warning and Control System aircraft: Tornado GR4 ground attack aircraft have been deployed to support strike operations in support of the UN Security Council Resolution (1973) No Fly Zone. Typhoon aircraft have also been deployed to enforce the No Fly Zone. VC10, Tristar, C130, C17, HS125 and HS146 aircraft have been deployed for logistic support including air-to-air refuelling.
	The Army has deployed forward elements of 30 Signal Regiment and Lead Air Support Squadron to Italy for communications and engineering support respectively.

Piracy

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions his Department has had with (a) the International Maritime Organisation, (b) Shrivenham Defence College, (c) the International Institute for Strategic Studies, (d) Newport News and (e) other external bodies on naval doctrine concerning the threat of piracy.

Nick Harvey: The Development, Concepts and Doctrine Centre, located with the Defence Academy at Shrivenham, is integral to the Ministry of Defence and its work informs development of naval doctrine. The Department also has good links with the International Maritime Organisation, the International Institute for Strategic Studies, the US Maritime Warfare Development Organisations and other international bodies, including NATO and the EU, and conducts routine liaison including on the issue of counter piracy.

Somalia: Piracy

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will assess the relevance of the UK maritime doctrine to the situation of piracy off the coast of Somalia and in the western Indian Ocean.

Nick Harvey: UK maritime doctrine is at the forefront of both the UK and NATO efforts to counter piracy off the coast of Somalia and in the Indian Ocean and is reflected in NATO established doctrine contained in EXTAC 789, which is kept under regular review. Recognised as a lead NATO nation in this area, the UK recently took over ownership of this NATO publication which is widely employed by the Royal Navy alongside UK standard operating procedures for boarding operations.
	EXTAC 789 is amended on a regular cycle and discussed annually at the NATO maritime operations working group.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Creative Industry Council

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport who the (a) members and (b) Chair will be of the Creative Industry Council announced in the 2011 Budget; and what its remit will be.

Jeremy Hunt: holding answer 29 March 2011
	I anticipate that the members of the Council will contain a representation of the key sub sectors and trade associations from across the creative industries. Currently the Council is co-chaired by myself and the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills.

Creative Industry Council

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport whether the Creative Industry Council announced in the 2011 Budget will be led by industry or by Government.

Jeremy Hunt: holding answer 29 March 2011
	The purpose of the council is to provide a forum which can act as a voice for industry both within Government and outside, including in the financial sector. To that end the agenda needs to be led by industry as they are best placed to identify the most pressing problems facing the sector.

Departmental Domestic Visits

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how many (a) arts and cultural performances and (b) competitive sports events he has attended in an official capacity since his appointment.

Jeremy Hunt: holding answer 24 March 2011
	Since my appointment I have attended 11 arts and cultural performances and eight competitive sports events in an official capacity.

Museums: Finance

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport if he will put in place mechanisms to monitor the effect on admission charges to local and regional museums of changes in funding to (a) local authorities, (b) regional development agencies and (c) higher education institutions; and if he will publish the outcomes of such monitoring.

Jeremy Hunt: holding answer 30 March 2011
	The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) monitor the overall effects of changes in local government funding to local and regional museums, particularly the effects of local government funding changes on the museums funded through the MLA’s Renaissance in the Regions programme. There are no plans to publish data on the specific impact of changes in funding from local authorities, regional development agencies and higher education institutions on the price of admission to local and regional museums.

Third Sector

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport whether (a) he and (b) Ministers in his Department are participating in volunteering activities as part of his Department’s involvement in the Big Society initiative.

Jeremy Hunt: I and my Department’s Ministers are actively involved with numerous charities on a private basis as detailed in the list of Ministers’ interests, recently published by the Cabinet Office, as well as our involvement in local voluntary activities in our constituencies.

Youth Sport Trust Young Ambassadors

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport whether Ministers in his Department plan to meet Youth Sport Trust Young Ambassadors when they deliver their petition against changes in his Department's expenditure.

Tim Loughton: I have been asked to reply.
	I was very pleased to have been able to meet the Young Ambassadors when they delivered their petition about funding for school sport. In addition, I had a further, very productive, meeting with the Young Ambassadors steering group at the House of Commons on 21 February 2011.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Child Poverty

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many children in each ethnic group were living in poverty in each of the last 10 years.

Maria Miller: Estimates of the number and proportion of children living in poverty are published in the Households Below Average Income (HBAI) series. HBAI uses household income adjusted (or ‘equivalised’) for household size and composition, to provide a proxy for standard of living. The latest available data cover 2008-09.
	Due to small sample sizes involved, estimates by ethnic group are based on a three year average.
	
		
			 Percentage of children living in relative poverty before housing costs (BHC) by ethnic group of head of household 
			  Percentage of children 
			 Period White Black and Black British Indian Pakistani/ Bangladeshi All other categories 
			 1997-98 to 1999-2000 24 39 36 68 37 
			 1998-99 to 2000-01 23 37 34 68 33 
			 1999-2000 to 2001-02 22 34 33 66 31 
			 2000-01 to 2002-03 21 33 25 65 31 
			 2001-02 to 2003-04 20 34 28 64 31 
			 2002-03 to 2004-05 20 33 28 60 32 
			 2003-04 to 2005-06 19 33 30 56 32 
			 2004-05 to 2006-07 20 31 27 55 31 
			 2005-06 to 2007-08 20 30 28 58 30 
			 2006-07 to 2008-09 20 34 27 58 30 
			 Notes: 1. These statistics are based on Households Below Average Income (HBAI) data sourced from the Family Resources Survey (FRS). These use disposable household income, adjusted using modified OECD equivalisation factors for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living. 2. All estimates are based on survey data and are therefore subject to uncertainty. Small differences should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non-response. 3. The reference period for Households Below Average Income figures are single financial years. Due to small sample sizes involved, estimate by ethnic group are based on three year averages. 4. From 2001-02 it is possible to split the ethnic groups further. It is not possible to separate out definitional and real effects. 5. The ‘all other categories’ group includes mixed, Chinese and other. 6. Data up to 2001-02 correspond to Great Britain, while data from 2002-03 correspond to the United Kingdom. 7. These statistics are based on incomes before housing costs. 8. Relative poverty is defined as: children living in households with less than 60% of contemporary median household income. 9. These statistics are publicly available in the Households Below Average Income report on the DWP website: http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/hbai/hbai_2009/index.php?page=contents Table 4.5, page 74 for latest three-year average. Source: Households Below Average Income, DWP

Departmental Public Consultation

Alok Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many public consultations his Department and its predecessors have conducted in each of the last 10 years; for how long each consultation was open; how many responses were received to each consultation; and what the cost to the public purse of conducting each consultation was.

Chris Grayling: The information is not held centrally in the Department, and could be provided only partially, and at disproportionate cost.
	This Department publishes consultation information on its website which can be accessed at:
	http://www.dwp.gov.uk/consultations/
	This website contains information about consultations undertaken, and any published responses, from 2009 to date. This will show each consultation and how long it was open for. Consultation responses, where published, will show the number of responses received in that consultation. We do not quantify costs of consultations, primarily because the main cost in most cases is that of the staff time involved.
	Earlier consultations are archived at:
	http://www.dwp.gov.uk/publications/publications-archive/consultations-papers/
	It is possible to request published consultations and responses on an individual basis.

Disability Living Allowance

Margaret Curran: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people with each disability are in receipt of an indefinite award of disability living allowance.

Maria Miller: The information requested is contained in the following table:
	
		
			 Number of indefinite awards of disability living allowance in payment by main disabling condition—May 2010 
			 Condition All awards Indefinite awards 
			 All 3,157,300 2,239,500 
			 Arthritis 585,400 509,500 
			 Muscle/Joint/Bone Disease 215,700 169,200 
			 Blindness/Visual Disease 69,900 61,800 
			 Stroke Related 111,300 95,300 
			 Learning Difficulty 360,300 210,900 
			 Mental Health Causes 514,900 277,500 
			 Epilepsy 73,100 42,300 
			 Deafness 41,500 27,700 
			 Malignant Disease 82,300 37,700 
			 Chest Disease 93,800 84,500 
			 Back Ailments 247,300 196,300 
			 Heart Disease 140,100 124,900 
			 Parkinson’s Disease 18,700 18,300 
			 Diabetes Mellitus 60,200 33,800 
			 Renal Disorders 15,500 8,300 
			 AIDS 8,600 7,300 
			 Skin Disease 16,400 5,400 
			 Frailty 2,900 2,800 
			 Multiple Sclerosis 68,800 64,800 
		
	
	
		
			 Other 430,600 261,100 
			 Notes: 1. Caseload figures are rounded to the nearest 100. 2. Totals show the number of people in receipt of an allowance, and exclude people with entitlement where the payment has been suspended, for example if they are in hospital. 3. Where more than one disability is present only the main disabling condition is recorded. 4. A diagnosed medical condition does not mean that someone is automatically entitled to DLA. Entitlement is dependent on an assessment of how much help someone needs with personal care and/or mobility because of their disability. These statistics are only collected for administrative purposes. 5. The preferred statistics on benefits are now derived from 100% data sources. However, the 5% sample data still provide some detail not yet available from the 100% data sources, in particular, more complete information on the disabling condition of DLA claimants. DWP recommends that, where the detail is only available on the 5% sample data, or disabling condition (DLA) is required, the proportions derived should be scaled up to the overall 100% total for the benefit. Source: Department for Work and Pensions, Information Directorate. DLA figures are from 5% sample data.

Disability Living Allowance

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer or 18 March 2011, Official Report, column 739W, on disability living allowance, what discussions he has had with (a) the Secretary of State for Education and (b) the devolved Administrations on (i) the introduction of a single assessment process for a child’s social care, health and special educational needs and (ii) the use of such a process for personal independence payments.

Maria Miller: I have had discussions with the Minister with responsibility for children and families about the best approach to exploring a single assessment process and education, health and social care plan and I have also agreed to explore whether the single assessment process might also be used to support claims for disability living allowance and personal independence payment.
	I have written to the Deputy Minister for Social Services in the Welsh Assembly Government and the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing in the Scottish Government about disability living allowance reform. In addition, officials at the Department for Work and Pensions are in regular contact with their counterparts in the territorial offices as work on reform of disability living allowance and its replacement with personal independence payment progresses. Officials from the territorial offices are members of the Cross Whitehall Working Group on reform of disability living allowance and have been sent updates.

Disability Living Allowance

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of people in (a) the UK, (b) England, (c) the North East and (d) Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland constituency who will have their disability living allowance (i) reduced and (ii) removed as a result of his Department's planned welfare reforms.

Maria Miller: Support in personal independence payment will be focussed on those who face the biggest barriers to independent living. The assessment is being developed and at this stage, and therefore an assessment is not available of the impact changes could have on existing disability living allowance, or future recipients. We are working with disabled people and organisations that represent them on the detailed design and delivery of personal independence payment and the outcomes from this work will be reflected in updates to the impact assessment for this change. We have already announced that personal independence payment will be a non taxable, non means-tested benefit payable to people in and out of work.

Disability Living Allowance

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will assess the effects on the ability of care home residents to participate in community activities of removing the mobility component of disability living allowance; and if he will make a statement.

Maria Miller: The Government have listened to charities and other stakeholders and will not remove the mobility component of the disability living allowance for people funded by the state in residential care in October 2012.
	The needs of care home residents will be considered at the same time as other current and future recipients of DLA as part of the wider reform of DLA. The Government remain fully committed to supporting disabled people.

Disability: Motor Vehicles

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the eligibility criteria for road tax exemptions for vehicles adapted for use by disabled people;
	(2)  if he will review legislation on the exemption from road tax of adapted vehicles for disabled people over the age of 65 years who are ineligible for disability living allowance.

Justine Greening: I have been asked to reply.
	Vehicle excise duty exemptions are available to mobility scooters, recipients of the disability living allowance higher rate mobility supplement and organisations devoted to the care of disabled people. The eligibility criteria for exemption are consistent with the welfare policies inherited from the previous Government.
	A consultation on disability living allowance reform closed on 18 February 2011 and the Government will publish a response shortly. Vehicle excise duty and associated exemptions are kept under review.

Employment Schemes

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the number of persons in (a) Glasgow, (b) Scotland and (c) Great Britain who will participate in the Work Programme in each of the next four financial years.

Chris Grayling: We have provided volumes for each contract package area but have not included further geographical breakdowns. Therefore we do not have Work Programme volumes for Glasgow.
	The following table includes the number of customers expected to join the Work Programme in Scotland and Great Britain.
	
		
			  Scotland Great Britain 
			 2011-12 57,000 605,000 
			 2012-13 53,000 565,000 
			 2013-14 47,000 510,000 
			 2014-15 36,000 395,000 
			 Note:  Figures for 2011-12 are based on a full year of volumes assuming contracts begin in April 2011; a later contract start date will result in lower volumes. 
		
	
	However, the number of people actually supported by Work Programme providers will be more than the number of customers starting the Work Programme in any one year because customers are supported for two years.
	For example, in 2012-13 Work Programme providers are expected to be supporting a total of 1,170,000 customers across Great Britain: 605,000 customers who are expected to join the Work Programme in 2011-12 and are in their second year on the Work Programme, and 565,000 customers who are expected to join the Work Programme in 2012-13 and are in their first year on the Work Programme.

Employment Schemes

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of clients on each fit for work pilot scheme has been diagnosed with each type of illness.

Chris Grayling: The information is in the table:
	
		
			 Main health condition of fit for work service clients by pilot 
			 Percentage 
			  Main health condition reported by clients 
			 Fit for work service pilot Main health conditions Musculoskeletal disorders Other conditions 
			 Birmingham, Coventry, Sandwell and Solihull 32 19 48 
			 Dundee 13 84 2 
			 Eastern and Coastal Kent 43 35 22 
			 Greater Manchester 53 4 43 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 49 45 6 
			 Leicestershire 60 26 14 
			 North Staffordshire 59 25 16 
			 Nottinghamshire 69 10 21 
			 Rhyl 49 40 10 
			 Scotland-wide 17 72 10 
			 Wakefield District 53 16 31 
			 All pilots 39 37 24 
			 Notes: 1. Figures have been rounded to the nearest whole figure and may not sum due to rounding. 2. Figures cover the period April 2010 to February 2011. 3. ‘Other conditions’ include cardiovascular conditions, respiratory diseases, injuries, neurological conditions, obesity and conditions not recorded. Source: Management Information on Fit for Work Services.

Employment Schemes: Cancer

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what provision he plans to put in place for people recovering from cancer who remain unable to return to work for longer than a year from the start of their treatment under his proposals for welfare reform; and if he will make a statement.

Maria Miller: As part of the Welfare Reform Bill we intend to introduce a one-year time limit to contributory employment support allowance (ESA) for those in the Work Related Activity Group.
	People in the Support Group will not have their benefit time limited because they have the most severe health conditions or disabilities and are the least likely to move into work.
	People receiving income-related ESA will not have their benefit time limited.
	In the case of those with cancer who are unable to work and have been placed in the Support Group, they will continue to receive targeted and unconditional support through employment and support allowance, and will not be affected by our proposals to introduce a time limit. After one year, those in the Work Related Activity Group will still be able to apply for income-related ESA, which will act as a safety net for those without the means to support themselves.
	Employment and support allowance customers, including those on contributory ESA, will have access to our full range of employment support including the Work Programme. Those whose benefit has come to an end can remain on the programme if they wish, which will ensure that they continue to receive all the support they need to help them return to, and remain in, work.

Incapacity Benefit and Employment and Support Allowance

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people claimed (a) incapacity benefit and (b) employment and support allowance in each (i) month, (ii) quarter and (iii) year since January 2000; and if he will make a statement.

Maria Miller: The information requested is given in the following table.
	
		
			 Incapacity benefit/severe disablement allowance (IB/SDA) and employment and support allowance (ESA) caseloads, February 2000 to August 2010 
			  IB/SDA ESA 
			 February 2000 2,724,030 n/a 
			 May 2000 2,728,090 n/a 
			 August 2000 2,756,510 n/a 
			 November 2000 2,764,140 n/a 
			    
			 February 2001 2,792,030 n/a 
			 May 2001 2,795,340 n/a 
			 August 2001 2,805,450 n/a 
			 November 2001 2,787,710 n/a 
			    
			 February 2002 2,787,220 n/a 
			 May 2002 2,807,620 n/a 
			 August 2002 2,811,430 n/a 
			 November 2002 2,818,480 n/a 
			    
			 February 2003 2,818,570 n/a 
			 May 2003 2,815,660 n/a 
			 August 2003 2,819,050 n/a 
			 November 2003 2,822,270 n/a 
			    
			 February 2004 2,819,160 n/a 
			 May 2004 2,814,710 n/a 
			 August 2004 2,817,010 n/a 
			 November 2004 2,814,410 n/a 
			    
			 February 2005 2,799,870 n/a 
			 May 2005 2,783,720 n/a 
			 August 2005 2,767,740 n/a 
			 November 2005 2,752,900 n/a 
			    
			 February 2006 2,747,490 n/a 
			 May 2006 2,730,000 n/a 
			 August 2006 2,724,980 n/a 
			 November 2006 2,714,950 n/a 
			    
			 February 2007 2,704,100 n/a 
			 May 2007 2,685,320 n/a 
			 August 2007 2,683,160 n/a 
			 November 2007 2,683,750 n/a 
			    
			 February 2008 2,659,650 n/a 
			 May 2008 2,637,560 n/a 
			 August 2008 2,632,000 n/a 
			 November 2008 2,593,010 53,770 
			    
			 February 2009 2,468,620 175,810 
			 May 2009 2,374,210 288,270 
			 August 2009 2,299,580 374,440 
			 November 2009 2,233,880 425,770 
			    
			 February 2010 2,176,530 479,430 
			 May 2010 2,126,690 527,120 
		
	
	
		
			 August 2010 2,082,570 563,980 
			 n/a = Not applicable. Notes: 1. Caseload figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Employment and support allowance replaced incapacity benefit and income support paid on the grounds of incapacity for new claims from 27 October 2008. 3. Data includes people in receipt of benefit and also those who fail the contributions conditions but receive a national insurance credit, i.e. ‘credits only cases’. 4. Data for these benefits are only available on a quarterly basis. 5. The data provided is published at: http://83.244.183.180/100pc/tabtool.html 6. From 6 April 2001, no new claims to severe disablement allowance were accepted. In addition from 27 October 2008, no new claims to incapacity benefit were accepted. Source: DWP Information Directorate: Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study

Low Incomes

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate his Department made of the level of in-work poverty.

Chris Grayling: The Department does not publish projections of the expected levels of in-work poverty.

Performance-related Pay

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether his Department has made any assessment of the effects on workplace stress of trends in the use of performance-related pay.

Chris Grayling: The Health and Safety Executive has made no assessment of the effects of performance-related pay (PRP) on workplace stress.

Personal Independence Payments

Margaret Curran: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether recipients under the age of 65 in receipt of the proposed personal independence payment will be eligible to receive the benefit after they reach pension age.

Maria Miller: Individuals will be able to make a new claim for personal independence payment up to the age of 65 (or state pension age, if that is higher). We recognise that individuals who develop additional needs earlier in their lives have had less opportunity to earn and save for later life. As a result, we intend in regulations to allow individuals already in receipt of personal independence payment when they reach state pension age to continue to receive the benefit, subject to the entitlement conditions continuing to be satisfied.

Personal Independence Payment: Autism

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether a face-to-face assessment for the personal independence payment will be necessary for all people with autism, including those with significant paper evidence such as a comprehensive diagnostic report.

Maria Miller: The Government propose to replace disability living allowance with the personal independence payment in 2013-14. We are considering the most appropriate delivery model for the personal independence payment assessment and no decisions have yet been taken. We believe that advice from an approved independent professional will be an important part of ensuring that assessments are objective and consistent. In most cases, we expect this to involve a face-to-face consultation to enable an in-depth look at an individual's circumstances.
	We know it is essential that the assessment accurately captures the needs of disabled people with autistic spectrum disorders and this is something that the assessment development group that we have established is considering. For example, they believe that the new assessment should explicitly take account of the impact of a health condition or impairment, including autistic spectrum disorders, on an individual's ability to communicate. This would set it apart from the current DLA assessment. We also recognise the importance of ensuring that the assessment process is appropriate to individual's circumstances, including individuals with autistic spectrum disorders. Both I and departmental officials have met with the National Autistic Society to discuss our reform proposals and to seek their views on how the new benefit can best support those with autism. We will continue to work with disabled people and their organisations as the detail of the assessment criteria and its operation is developed and tested.

Personal Independence Payments

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether he has had discussions with organisations representing people with (a) autistic spectrum disorders, (b) Tourette’s syndrome and (c) depression on the system of face-to-face assessments proposed for the personal independence payments scheme.

Maria Miller: We are considering the delivery model for the personal independence payment assessment and decisions have not yet been taken on the detail of its operation. We believe that advice from a suitably trained and approved individual, for example a health care professional, will be an important part of ensuring that the assessment is more objective and consistent. In most cases, we expect this to involve a face-to-face consultation to enable an in-depth look at an individual’s circumstances.
	Both I and departmental officials have met with many organisations representing disabled people including the National Autistic Society and Mind to discuss our reform proposals and to seek their views on how the new benefit can best support those with these conditions. We have not met with any groups representing Tourette’s syndrome although we would be more than happy to do so to discuss the concerns they have.
	We agree with many of the points raised in the National Autistic Society’s recent report on DLA reform, “Who benefits?”, and we are looking closely at how these recommendations can be incorporated into its design. To ensure that we get this reform right, we will continue to work with disabled people and their organisations as the detail of the assessment criteria and its operation is developed and tested.

Work-based Stress

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether the Health and Safety Executive has arrangements to (a) measure and (b) assess mental stress in the workplace.

Chris Grayling: Since 2002, the HSE has commissioned questions in the Labour Force Survey (LFS) conducted by the Office for National Statistics, to gain a view of work-related illness based on individuals' perceptions; this includes work-related stress. The Labour Force Survey is a national survey of over 50,000 households conducted each quarter which provides information on the GB labour market, and is intended to be statistically representative of the population of people of working age.
	In 2005, the HSE also gained access to a system called The Health and Occupation Reporting network (THOR); this is a network of voluntary surveillance schemes, one of which is specifically dedicated to monitoring work-related mental ill health. Under this network, GPs and specialist doctors (in this particular scheme, psychiatrists and occupational physicians) undertake to systematically report all new cases that they see in their clinics. These reports are collated and analysed by the Centre for Occupational and Environmental Health, Manchester University. Figures published by the HSE relate to Great Britain only, although the THOR schemes do collect reports from doctors throughout the UK.
	Since 2004 we have also commissioned a series of Psychosocial Working Conditions surveys, also through the Office for National Statistics.
	Using these tools, the HSE is able to estimate the incidence and prevalence of work-related stress within the British work force. It also works with stakeholders to establish the veracity of the information gathered and includes evidence from other sources when considering the advice and guidance it provides to employers. These other data include surveys by major employers, Trades Union Congress, Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, the European Commission and the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work.
	For more information about the research conducted for the HSE please go to:
	http://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/causdis/stress/index.htm

Work-based Stress

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what research his Department and its predecessors have (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on levels of stress in the workplace in each of the last 10 years.

Chris Grayling: Since 2002, the HSE has commissioned questions in the Labour Force Survey (LFS) conducted by the Office for National Statistics, to gain a view of work-related illness based on individuals' perceptions; this includes work-related stress. The Labour Force Survey is a national survey of over 50,000 households conducted each quarter which provides information on the GB labour market, and is intended to be statistically representative of the population of people of working age.
	In 2005 the HSE gained access to a system called The Health and Occupation Reporting network (THOR); this is a network of voluntary surveillance schemes, one of which is specifically dedicated to monitoring work-related mental ill health. Under this network, GPs and specialist doctors (in this particular scheme, psychiatrists and occupational physicians) undertake to systematically report all new cases that they see in their clinics. These reports are collated and analysed by the Centre for Occupational and Environmental Health, Manchester University. Figures published by the HSE relate to Great Britain only, although the THOR schemes do collect reports from doctors throughout the UK.
	Since 2004 we have also commissioned a series of Psychosocial Working Conditions surveys, also through the Office for National Statistics.
	Using these tools the HSE is able to estimate the incidence and prevalence of stress within the British workforce. The LFS results point to a fairly static picture with around 450,000 people each year stating that they are suffering from stress caused or made worse by their current or previous work. However the number of working days lost to sickness absence as a result of work related stress has decreased from an estimate of almost 13 million in 2001-02 to an estimate of 9.8 million in 2009-10. For details of the information commissioned by the HSE, and data from THOR, please see the HSE website, which provides comparison tables for the years currently available, at:
	http://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/causdis/stress/index.htm

Universal Credit

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate his Department has made of the childcare support needed in the universal credit to make work pay for a lone parent earning £6 an hour for 25 hours a week who has a child aged (a) one and (b) six.

Maria Miller: holding answer 28 March 2011
	Estimating the amount of child care support that will be available to lone parents in universal credit in order to make work pay will depend on overall affordability and weekly child care costs.
	The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions announced in the second reading of the Welfare Reform Bill that there would be an additional element in universal credit to support child care costs, and that at least the same amount of money will be invested in this as in the existing system. He will provide more detail during passage of the Bill.

Winter Fuel Payments

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions at what rate he expects the winter fuel allowance to be paid to people aged (a) over 60 and (b) over 80 years in each of the next five financial years.

Maria Miller: Winter fuel payments for winter 2011-12 will be £200 for households with someone who has reached women’s state pension age and is under 80 and £300 for households with someone aged 80 or over. DWP forecasts of winter fuel payment expenditure assume that the level of payments will remain constant over the next five years.

Work Capability Assessment

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he has taken to ensure that the findings of the review of work capability assessment will be considered in the development of a new assessment for the personal independence payment.

Maria Miller: It is important to be clear that the new assessment for the personal independence payment (PIP) will be very different to the work capability assessment (WCA) used in employment and support allowance (ESA). This recognises that ESA and PIP are different benefits paid for different reasons. The emerging assessment for PIP will focus on individuals' ability to carry out key everyday activities, rather than capability for work and direct measures of associated functions as in the WCA.
	We are, however, seeking to learn from the overall experience of delivering the WCA. As part of this we are looking closely at the findings of the first independent review carried out by Professor Malcolm Harrington, to see where they can assist with the design of the PIP claim and assessment processes. For example, we fully recognise the need to ensure that these processes are transparent and empathetic; and are considering the scope to use mental, intellectual and cognitive champions to support the assessment as recommended by Harrington.

WOMEN AND EQUALITIES

Third Sector

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities how much the Government Equalities Office provided to each charity it funds in each year since its inception; and how much she has allocated for funding to each such charity in each of the next five years.

Lynne Featherstone: The Government Equalities Office (GEO) has provided the following amounts of funding to charities since it was established as a separate Department on 12 October 2007:
	
		
			 Financial year Funding recipient Amount (£) 
			 2008-09 British Association for Adoption and Fostering 20,200 
			  Survivors Trust 153,000 
			  Payment to Home Office to aid the funding of rape crisis centres 176,052 
			    
			 2009-10 British Association for Adoption and Fostering 24,075 
			  Equality South West 41,000 
			  Rape Crisis England and Wales 1,080,000 
			    
			 2010-11 Equality South West 41,000 
			  Rape Crisis England and Wales 85,000 
			  Payment to Ministry of Justice to aid the funding of rape crisis centres 1,000,000 
		
	
	The GEO is to merge with the Home Office under a machinery of government transfer from 1 April 2011. Future plans for the funding of charities have yet to be agreed.

TRANSPORT

Association of Train Operating Companies: Trade Unions

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many times (a) Ministers and (b) officials of his Department have met representatives of (i) the Association of Train Operating Companies and (ii) rail trade unions since 8 May 2010.

Theresa Villiers: Ministers have met the Association of Train Operating Companies and rail trade unions from time to time in the course of their duties.
	Officials meet the Association of Train Operation Companies regularly in the course of their day to day duties. Officials have been present when Ministers have met rail trade union officials.

Aviation

Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the number of passengers expected to leave the UK by air in (a) 2011-12, (b) 2012-13, (c) 2013-14 and (d) 2014-15.

Theresa Villiers: holding answer 22 March 2011
	The Department for Transport expects to publish air passenger demand forecasts later this year to support the development of a new policy framework for UK aviation.

Aviation: Working Hours

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with the Civil Aviation Authority on the European Aviation Safety Agency’s Notice of Proposed Amendment on flight time limitations; and by what date he expects the authority to have published its response to the agency’s proposals.

Theresa Villiers: Officials from the Department have discussed the Notice of Proposed Amendment with the Civil Aviation Authority on a number of occasions. The CAA has submitted its comments to the European Aviation Safety Agency and published them on its website:
	www.caa.co.uk

Blue Badge Scheme

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will assess the merits of providing additional assistance to persons aged over 65 who cannot apply for automatic qualification for the Blue Badge scheme because they are not eligible for the mobility component of disability living allowance.

Norman Baker: holding answer 30 March 2011
	People over 65, who cannot claim the higher rate mobility component of disability living allowance, can still qualify for a Blue Badge. They are able to apply for a badge directly to their local authority under the ‘eligible subject to further assessment’ criteria. This applies to anyone over the age of two years old; who has a permanent and substantial disability which causes inability to walk or very considerable difficulty in walking.
	People are also able to apply under the automatic criteria if they are registered blind or are in receipt of the War Pensioners Mobility Supplement.

Public Bodies Reform Programme

Tessa Jowell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate his Department has made of the level of savings which will accrue from the abolition of the Disabled Persons’ Transport Advisory Committee.

Norman Baker: On 16 March 2011, Official Report, columns 9-10WS, the Minister for the Cabinet Office issued a written ministerial statement updating Parliament on progress on public bodies reform. That statement also announced that Departments estimate cumulative administrative savings of at least £2.6 billion will flow from public bodies over the spending review period.
	I refer the right hon. Member to my answer of 28 March 2011, Official Report, column 91W. This provides our best current estimate of the level of savings which will accrue from the abolition of the Disabled Persons’ Transport Advisory Committee (DPTAC).
	The decision on DPTAC was not taken for financial reasons.

Driving: Young People

Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proposals to improve driver testing and training processes he is considering for those aged between 17 and 25.

Michael Penning: We want to ensure that all young drivers develop and maintain the knowledge, skills and attitudes to enable them to be safe and responsible road users. Effective arrangements for driver training and testing are among the issues that we shall address in our new Strategic Framework for Road Safety.

Railways: Finance

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the financial statement of 23 March 2011, Official Report, columns 958-9, whether the £200 million additional investment in regional railways is for the financial year 2011-12; when he expects to allocate this funding to individual projects; and if he will make a statement.

Theresa Villiers: On 23 March 2011, the Chancellor announced an additional £200 million of investment in regional railways. This investment will be added to Network Rail's Regulated Asset Base during the current Rail Control Period (2009 - 2014).
	The Department for Transport will agree a list of projects to be funded from this investment with Network Rail and the Office of Rail Regulation. We will make a further statement on this investment shortly.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Chief Scientific Adviser

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what plans he has for the future of the role of Chief Scientific Adviser to his Department.

Gregory Barker: The role of the Chief Scientific Advisor is to ensure DECC’s policy and decision-making are underpinned by robust science and engineering evidence and long-term thinking. I have no plans to change this.

Electricity: Meters

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate his Department has made of the likely number of unsafe electrical and gas installations which will be identified during the course of the smart meter installation programme; and whether energy suppliers will be required to (a) assess the safety of such installations and (b) disconnect unsafe installations during smart meter installation.

Charles Hendry: The smart meter programme team has worked with a wide range of industry and other stakeholders to consider the issues that could be identified at the point of smart meter installation, including both operational and safety issues. Most of these issues are well understood and are dealt with by industry as part of business-as-usual activities. There is limited quantitative information and a formal assessment of the potential number of installations which might be identified as unsafe has not been made to date.
	The Government consider that industry is best placed to continue to identify and resolve operational issues, in collaboration with other interested parties. One role of the programme will be to ensure that the scale and the nature of such issues are well understood by all parties and seek assurance that there are appropriate plans and processes in place to resolve them.

Energy: Housing

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 24 March 2011, Official Report, columns 1295-96W, on energy: housing, what research he has commissioned to assess the effects of pricing on consumer demand; which companies or organisations have been commissioned to undertake the work; what the overall cost to the public purse of the research is; what deadline has been set for completion of the research; and what the terms of reference and payments level for the research are.

Gregory Barker: DECC has commissioned two pieces of research which help to assess the impact of price, among other factors, on consumer demand for the Green Deal:
	A survey of members of the public designed to identify factors that change perception of Green Deal, including variations in the costs and financial terms.
	An economic model is also being created to better understand how to simulate consumer uptake of energy efficiency measures under a number of parameters, including variations in the price of measures. The model will be populated with data from the consumer survey.
	Element Energy Ltd. partnered with Cambridge Architectural Ltd. and Gfk NOP (respectively) have been commissioned to undertake these projects. The overall cost of the work will be £210,000 plus VAT.
	The model is scheduled to be completed at the end of August 2011 and findings should be available in DECC’s consultation paper on the Green Deal and impact assessments planned for autumn 2011.

Flood Control: Tsunami

Tessa Munt: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent assessment he has made of the likelihood of (a) a tsunami and (b) severe flooding on the Somerset Levels in the vicinity of Hinkley Point power station; and what records his Department holds on incidents of (i) tsunamis and (ii) severe flooding at sites of UK nuclear installations.

Charles Hendry: There is no reason to expect a similar scale of seismic activity in the UK as has happened in Japan. The largest recorded UK earthquake (Dogger Bank) was 65,000 times less powerful than the one recently experienced by Japan. The Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, my right hon. Friend the Member for Eastleigh (Chris Huhne) has asked the Chief Nuclear Inspector, Dr Mike Weightman, to provide a report to the Government on the implications of the events in Japan and the lessons to be learned for the UK nuclear industry.
	The Environment Agency has advised that it is reasonable to conclude that at Hinkley Point any new nuclear power station on the site could be protected against flood risk throughout its lifetime and including the potential effects of climate change, storm surge and tsunami.
	Possible sites for nuclear new build were considered in the revised draft Nuclear National Policy Statement against flood risk including the potential effects of sea level rises resulting from climate change. We are currently considering the responses to the consultation on the revised Nuclear NPS.
	The results are within the site assessments for each site in Volume II of the NPS:
	https://www.energynpsconsultation.decc.gov.uk/docs/Annex estoEN-6-RevisedDraftNuclearNPS%28VolumeII%29-October2010.pdf

Fuel Oil

Susan Elan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what discussions he has had with the Office of Fair Trading on its enquiry into the regulation of the heating oil market.

Charles Hendry: I refer the hon. Lady to the written ministerial statement I gave on 21 January 2011, Official Report, columns 55-56WS.
	I wrote to the chief executive of the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) on 19 January 2011 to ask him to bring forward the competition and consumer study into off grid energy, and explore the longer term consumer issues such as lifetime payback, consumer standards and labelling for alternative energy sources or supplies. The OFT study will provide an independent assessment of the off-grid market and will establish what further action may be necessary to ensure it works properly. The OFT intends to publish a report setting out its findings and recommendations on off-grid energy supply in October.
	I have had no further discussions on this matter with the OFT.

Renewable Energy

Graham Stringer: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what his policy is on meeting any shortfall which may arise as a result of (a) failure of renewable heat technologies to deliver adequate carbon savings and (b) premature product failure of renewable heat technologies by securing additional resources from (i) consumers, (ii) the public purse, (iii) manufacturers and (iv) Green Deal providers.

Gregory Barker: The Renewable Heat Incentive will be reviewed regularly against a number of criteria, including its performance in meeting renewables targets and delivering carbon savings. As announced on 10 March, a requirement of the RHI is that installations up to 45kWth must use installers and products accredited under the Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS), or equivalent, to be eligible for RHI. MCS gives assurances about likely quality, durability and performance of installations.
	We will use the Renewable Heat Premium Payment, starting this year, to monitor and learn from the performance of domestic renewable heat installations. The information we receive will help enable Government, manufacturers, installers and consumers to better understand how to maximise performance of the technologies supported.

Renewable Energy: Feed-in Tariffs

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the cash cap for his Department’s feed-in tariff scheme is for (a) 2011-12, (b) 2012-13, (c) 2013-14 and (d) 2014-15.

Gregory Barker: In the spending review, spending on FITs was confirmed as:
	
		
			  £ million 
			 2011-12 80 
			 2012-13 161 
			 2013-14 270 
			 2014-15 357 
			 Total (over four years) 868

Shale Gas Mining

Alun Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what responsibility he has for issuing policy guidance and directions on shale gas mining in Wales.

Charles Hendry: The Department is responsible for licensing all UK oil and gas exploration and production activities onshore in Great Britain, including conventional and unconventional resources. Planning is a devolved matter and so it is the responsibility of the National Assembly Government to set out planning policy on shale gas in Wales.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Animal Experiments: Primates

Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (a) how many and (b) what species of non-human primates imported for the purposes of scientific research were categorised as (i) captive-born or F1 generation and (ii) captive-bred or F2+ generation in 2010.

Lynne Featherstone: The information currently submitted to the Home Office following the acquisition of each batch of non-human primates provides evidence that animals have been born in captivity, but does not record whether animals are Fl or F2+. However, from other information available we estimate the respective totals to be as follows:
	
		
			 Primate species F1 F2+ Total 
			 Rhesus macaque 0 92 92 
			 Cynomolgus macaque 1,256 582 1,838 
			 Total 1,256 674 1,930

Animal Experiments: Primates

Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many and what species of non-human primates were imported into the UK for the purposes of scientific research in 2010; from which countries; and what the species was in each case.

Lynne Featherstone: The requested information is as follows:
	
		
			 Number of non-human primates imported in 2010 reported to date 
			 Country of export Rhesus macaque Cynomolgus macaque Total 
			 China 0 74 74 
			 Mauritius 0 1,284 1,284 
			 Netherlands 92 52 144 
			 Vietnam 0 428 428 
			 Total 92 1,838 1,930

Automatic Number Plate Recognition

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of vehicles seized for unpaid vehicle excise duty on the basis of information provided through the Automatic Number Plate Recognition system in the last three years were later shown to have been legally taxed and insured.

James Brokenshire: This information is not collated or held by the Home Office.

Common Travel Area

Stephen Mosley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans she has for the future of the Common Travel Area; and if she will make a statement.

Damian Green: We are committed to preserving the Common Travel Area (CTA) and its benefits for legitimate travellers, while at the same time improving the safeguards against abuse of the CTA. We have a clear programme of work with Ireland and the Crown dependencies to prevent abuse of the CTA by strengthening the external CTA border. We will maintain our existing internal controls to combat abuse within the CTA.

DNA: Databases

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans she has for the future management of the National DNA Database.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office is currently working with the National Policing Improvement Agency (NPIA), and the wider police service, to determine appropriate arrangements for the continued management of the National DNA Database after the NPIA is phased out.

Entry Clearances: Students

Jack Dromey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the likely effects of her proposed reforms to the student immigration route on economic regeneration and international competitiveness of the UK economy.

Damian Green: The Secretary of State for the Home Department announced the Government’s plans to reform the student immigration system on 22 March 2011,
	Official Report,
	columns 855-872. An impact assessment will be published in due course.

Government Communications

Hazel Blears: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff work in her Department's Research, Information and Communications Unit; how much was spent on the unit's operation in (a) 2008-09 and (b) 2009-10; what she expects to spend on the unit's operation in 2010-11; and what proportion of the unit's total capacity costs in each such year each figure represents.

Nick Herbert: For the purposes of this answer the amount spent on the unit’s ‘operation’ has been interpreted to mean all staff and non-staff administration costs, and ‘total capacity costs’ to mean total expenditure.
	Twenty two members of staff drawn from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and Home Office, work full-time in Research Information and Communications Unit (RICU). In addition, the Ministry of Defence and Department for International Development each funds one member of staff engaged part-time on RICU business. The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG), originally one of three parent Departments, stopped funding RICU and withdrew its seconded employees during 2010, in line with its new remit to lead work to promote integration separately.
	Total RICU expenditure in 2008-09 and 2009-10 and projected spend for 2010-11 is set out in the following two tables. The first indicates the proportion of administration (staff and non-staff) and programme costs met by the Home Office, FCO and DCLG in each of the three years. The second shows administration and programme costs as a percentage of total RICU expenditure for the same three years.
	
		
			 RICU Expenditure by Government Department 
			 Financial year Contributing Department Administration costs (£m) Departmental share (%) Programme costs (£m) Departmental share (%) Total spend (£m) Departmental share (%) 
			 2008-09 Home Office 1.14 75 0.11 7 1.25 39 
			  FCO 0.15 10 0.81 50 0.96 30 
			  DCLG 0.25 15 0.70 43 0.95 30 
			  RICU total 1.55 — 1.62 — 3.17 — 
			         
			 2009-10 Home Office 0.96 65 2.08 35 3.04 41 
			  FCO 0.36 24 2.65 45 3.01 41 
			  DCLG 0.18 11 1.18 20 1.36 18 
			  RICU total 1.50 — 5.91 — 7.41 — 
			         
			 2010-11(1) Home Office 0.80 69 0.28 9 1.08 26 
			  FCO 0.29 25 2.81 91 3.10 74 
			  DCLG 0.08 7 — 0 0.08 2 
			  RICU total 1.16 — 3.09 — 4.25 — 
			 (1 )Projected. Note: The Home Office is RICU’s host Department and is responsible for all non-staff administration costs. 
		
	
	
		
			 RICU spend by budget category 
			 Financial year Total spend   (£m) Administration costs (£m) Proportion of total spend (%) Programme costs (£m) Proportion of total spend (%) 
			 2008-09 3.17 1.55 49 1.62 51 
			 2009-10 7.41 1.50 20 5.91 80 
			 2010-11(1) 4.25 1.16 27 3.09 73 
			 (1 )Projected.

Human Trafficking: EU Law

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  which of the measures in the original text of the EU Directive on Human Trafficking she considered to be contrary to the UK’s interest; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 22 March 2011, Official Report, column 52WS, on the EU Directive (Human Trafficking), what the main risk associated with the text was which has now been overcome.

Damian Green: The Government decided not to opt in to the European Directive on Human Trafficking at the outset, but to review its position in line with the revised text. The main risk was that the text could change during the negotiations in ways that could have been unhelpful to the UK’s interests. The Government have now reviewed the finalised text and I have written to the Parliamentary Scrutiny Committees notifying them of our intention to apply to opt in.
	A final decision remains subject to parliamentary scrutiny.

Human Trafficking: Northern Ireland

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many cases of human trafficking have been reported in Northern Ireland in each of the last 10 years; and how many convictions for human trafficking offences in Northern Ireland there have been in that period.

Damian Green: The criminal offence of human trafficking is contained with the Sexual Offences Act 2003 and the Asylum and Immigration (Treatment of Claimants etc) Act 2004.
	The Northern Ireland Organised Crime Task Force annual report shows that 11 potential victims of human trafficking were recovered in 2008-09 and 25 in 2009-10. These reports can be found at
	www.octf.gov.uk
	Figures for 2010-11 will be contained in the annual report due to be published in June 2011.
	The UK Human Trafficking Centre’s interrogation of the police national computer shows there have been three convictions for human trafficking in Northern Ireland, two of which were in 2008 and one in 2010.

Members: Correspondence

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she plans to reply to the letter form the right hon. Member for Birkenhead (Mr Field) of 17 February 2011 on her constituent Rasam Aliaziz.

Damian Green: I wrote to the right hon. Member on 29 March 2011

Passport Office: Liverpool

Louise Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  who gave the instruction to terminate the employment of those employees of Liverpool Passport Office whose employment was terminated on 21 March 2011;
	(2)  what discussions she has had with representatives of the Public and Commercial Services Union on the termination of employment of employees at Liverpool Passport Office on 21 March 2011;
	(3)  when she was informed of the decision to terminate the employment of those employees of Liverpool Passport Office whose employment ended on 21 March 2011;
	(4)  what steps she has taken in the light of the termination of employment of employees at Liverpool Passport Office to determine whether contract errors have been made by the Identity and Passport Service in relation to other offices;
	(5)  what steps the Passport Agency took in respect of the 14 employees at its Liverpool Office incorrectly recruited under the IPS Friends and Family scheme between the time at which the mistake was discovered and 21 March 2011;
	(6)  when the error in relation to the recruitment of those employees of Liverpool Passport Office whose employment was terminated on 21 March 2011 was discovered.

Damian Green: The decision to terminate the employment of those Liverpool office staff who had been incorrectly appointed on permanent civil service contracts, was taken by the chief executive following advice from IPS HR and from the Civil Service Commission.
	No discussions have taken place between myself and the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS). National PCS union representatives were told about the issue on 2 March 2011. IPS HR and local branch representatives from the PCS union met on 16 March 2011 and they were made aware of the position at this meeting.
	This is an operational decision for Home Office managers. IPS informed Ministers about the decision to terminate the employment contracts of affected employees in Liverpool Passport Office on 18 March.
	The permanent contracts in question were only issued in the Liverpool regional office.
	IPS explored a number of options with the Civil Service Commission once the mistake was discovered including replacing the permanent contracts of employment with fixed-term appointment contracts and retrospectively applying exceptions under the Civil Service Order in Council. In the case of 10 employees IPS has been able to award fixed-term contracts for the two-year period from their original start date. The remaining four employees had already been employed by IPS for more than two years. IPS has also met with the staff involved and sincerely apologised for this mistake.
	An internal audit of IPS external recruitment at the end of March 2010 discovered the error in relation to the Liverpool Passport Office recruitment scheme conducted during the autumn of 2008. We then set about exploring options to avoid termination.

Prostitution

Ben Gummer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what strategy her Department has to tackle prostitution; and if she will make a statement.

Lynne Featherstone: The Government are currently looking at the approaches taken towards prostitution in different local areas in England and Wales in order to identify effective practice in terms of policing, harm minimisation multi-agency working and schemes to help people leave prostitution. Effective practice guidance for local areas will be published later in the spring.

Third Sector

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 8 March 2011, Official Report, column 949W, on voluntary work and charitable donations, how much her Department spent on implementation of its policy on volunteering in each of the last five years; and how much it expects to allocate for the purpose in each of the next five years.

Damian Green: The Home Office encourages staff to take up to five days special leave to develop their skills and experience, while giving something back to the community. The small team responsible for this programme also undertake other tasks and it is not possible to disaggregate the costs of their time. Voluntary organisations and representative bodies (eg Volunteering Centre Westminster, Magistrates Association and Victims Support) are invited to give presentations to staff to encourage them to participate. Links to a wide range of volunteering opportunities are also advertised on the departmental intranet. Information about the take up of these opportunities is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	The Department has spent between £3,500 and £5,000 per year in each of the last five years with a voluntary sector brokerage service to place Home Office volunteers into appropriate volunteering opportunities.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make it her policy to reinstate the Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund.

Richard Benyon: holding answer 30 March 2011
	The Government have no plans to reinstate the aggregates levy sustainability fund (ALSF). The decision to discontinue the fund was taken as part of the spending review settlement in October 2010 in a very tight spending context where we looked very carefully across all the Department's priorities to identify where we could make best use of available funds. Unfortunately, it was decided that the fund was no longer in a position to continue funding the ALSF programme.
	The aggregates levy is a tax on the commercial exploitation of aggregate, administered by HM Revenue and Customs, and is separate from the Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund. As announced at the recent Budget, the rate increase on the aggregates levy has been postponed until 2012-13.

Badgers: Tourism

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether she has made an assessment of the potential effects of a badger cull on tourism revenues in each region.

James Paice: Some concerns have been raised that badger culling might have an impact on tourism in the areas affected by TB. However, we have not seen any clear or credible evidence to support the view that there would be any significant impact.
	No decision on badger control has yet been taken. We received a large number of responses to the public consultation, which we are considering carefully. We will announce our decision as part of a comprehensive and balanced TB Eradication Programme for England as soon as possible.

Candidate Special Areas of Conservation

Oliver Colvile: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions the Management Board of her Department have had on the designation of Candidate Special Areas of Conservation.

Richard Benyon: The designation of Candidate Special Areas of Conservation has been discussed from time to time as part of the Board's ongoing review of DEFRA's programmes.

Environment

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans she has to establish a mechanism to measure the Government’s commitment to be the greenest administration ever.

James Paice: A number of measures are already in place to help deliver this commitment.
	These include reducing carbon emissions from Government offices by 10% in one year, establishing a Green Investment Bank with £3 billion to drive investment in a green economy, introducing a floor price for carbon, and improving energy efficiency through our ‘Green Deal’ while also helping people and businesses save money. New Greening Government Commitments for Operations and Procurement were announced in February this year as part of a package of measures to mainstream sustainable development across Government, a key mechanism for supporting the delivery of our ambition to be the greenest Government ever. This package also includes enhancing sustainability in policy making, for example through the scrutiny of business plans by the Minister with responsibility for Government policy for their sustainable development credentials.
	The Government have made clear their intention to be more transparent and allow people and Parliament to hold Ministers and public services to account; so overall success on this cross-Government commitment will, rightly, be for others to judge.

Environment Protection: Departmental Co-ordination

Duncan Hames: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  which Ministers have attended each of her monthly breakfasts for the designated green Ministers in each Department;
	(2)  which Ministers have attended each Green Breakfast meeting hosted by her Department;
	(3)  which Ministers attended each of the last three Green Breakfast meetings.

James Paice: The information is as follows:
	The first meeting on 1 February 2011 was attended by the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the hon. Member for Newbury (Richard Benyon), the Minister of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the right hon. Member for South East Cambridgeshire (Mr Paice), Lord Henley, the Minister of State, Cabinet Office, the right hon. Member for West Dorset (Mr Letwin), the Economic Secretary to the Treasury, the Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government the hon. Member for Hazel Grove (Andrew Stunell), the Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change, the hon. Member for Bexhill and Battle (Gregory Barker), the Minister for Universities and Science, the Under-Secretary of State for Transport, the hon. Member for Lewes, (Norman Baker), the Minister of State, Department for International Development and the right hon. Member for Rutland and Melton (Mr Duncan).
	The second meeting on 8 March was attended by the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the hon. Member for Newbury, Lord Henley, the Minister of State, Cabinet Office, the right hon. Member for West Dorset the Economic Secretary to the Treasury, the Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government the hon. Member for Hazel Grove, the Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change, the hon. Member for Bexhill and Battle, the Under-Secretary of State for Transport, the hon. Member for Lewes, the Under-Secretary of State for International Development, the hon. Member for Eddisbury (Mr O’Brien) and the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, the hon. Member for North West Norfolk (Mr Bellingham).

Fisheries

Charles Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what measures the Government is taking to maintain arrangements for supervision of recreational fisheries after the removal of that discrete function from the Environment Agency; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Benyon: holding answer 28 March 2011
	There has been no change to the duties on the Environment Agency to ‘maintain, improve and develop fisheries for salmon, trout eel, freshwater fish, lamprey and smelt’ (Environment Act 1995 as amended by Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009). Nor has there been any change to the guidance issued by Government to the Environment Agency in the interpretation of this duty in contributing to the achievement of sustainable development, i.e. ‘in particular: to ensure the conservation and maintain the diversity of freshwater fish, salmon, sea trout and eels (and lampreys and smelt) and to conserve their aquatic environment; to enhance the contribution migratory and freshwater fisheries make to the economy, particularly in remote rural areas and in areas with low levels of income; and to enhance the social value of fishing as a widely available and healthy form of recreation.’
	The Environment Agency will continue to work towards ensuring more people from all backgrounds enjoy and appreciate the water environments close to them. It will achieve this through its role as a navigation authority and its work on angling.

Flood Control

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what consideration her Department has given to the recommendation of the Pitt Report that flood defences should be allocated an above-inflation funding settlement.

Richard Benyon: Expenditure on flood risk management cannot be immune from the over-riding need to reduce the deficit, and to deliver efficiencies across all areas of public spending. DEFRA has committed to spend at least £2.16 billion over four years on flood and coastal erosion risk management in England. This is approximately 8% less than the amount spent by DEFRA over the previous four years. The Department has protected key front line aspects of the budget such as flood forecasting and warnings, incident response and the risk-based maintenance of existing defences. We also expect to be able to provide improved levels of protection to 145,000 homes by March 2015, even within a reduced budget.

Flood Control

Neil Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether she has reviewed the Environment Agency's flood risk assessment of homes in England; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Benyon: While DEFRA does not undertake technical or quality reviews of the Environment Agency's national flood risk assessments, departmental representatives do sit on the National Flood Risk Assessment (NaFRA) programme board with the Environment Agency. They contribute to the programme of works and development of this tool.
	The NaFRA model is run on a quarterly basis for selected catchments, and each time it is run revisions are made to the flood risk. DEFRA is kept well informed of these and the Environment Agency and its consultants undertake extensive quality assurance, including requiring all NaFRA model outputs to be reviewed by local staff to ensure that they are a true representation of flood risk. Recently a more robust framework for validation and quantification of uncertainty has also been developed.

Food: Production

Dan Byles: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether she has estimated the total domestic food production capacity of the UK measured in terms of the proportion of the population it would feed.

James Paice: No such calculation has been made. UK agriculture’s share of the UK food market will in part reflect its ability to compete in international commodity markets. We are working to support British farming and encourage sustainable food production by helping to enhance the competitiveness and resilience of the farming industry.

Horses: Passports

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 10 March 2011, Official Report, columns 1218-19W, on horse passports, what estimate she has made of (a) the number of horses which died in each of the last three years and (b) the proportion of such deaths which were not reported to the authority issuing horse passports.

James Paice: There is a legal requirement for a horse's passport to be returned to the passport issuing organisation that issued it upon the death of the animal.
	National Equine Database records show the number of horses that have died in each of the last three years is as follows:
	
		
			  Horses 
			 2008 10, 339 
			 2009 11, 942 
			 2010 13,917 
		
	
	DEFRA does not compile estimates of the number of passports that are not returned to the issuing body upon the death of the animal.

Poultry: Animal Welfare

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps her Department is taking to assist the farming industry in preparing for the ban on battery cages for laying hens.

James Paice: As the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs made clear at February’s Agriculture Council, when some EU member states sought more time to comply with the ban on conventional cages, any delay in implementing the ban would be unfair to all the egg producers in the UK who have made significant investments to convert out of battery cages ahead of the European deadline. It would be unjust for them to have to compete with producers from other European countries which have not converted.
	The UK has consistently called for the ban to be implemented in 2012 with strict enforcement by the EU.
	We welcome the efforts the UK laying hen industry has made to comply with the ban and we will continue to work closely with the Commission, other member states and the industry to find a practical enforcement solution.

Seas and Oceans: Radiation

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent assessment she has made of the safety of radiation levels of seawater in which the UK fishing fleet fish; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Benyon: There is a substantial programme of environmental monitoring for radioactivity in UK waters which has been established for a number of years. The results of this programme, together with implications for human health and environmental health are published annually in the Radioactivity in Food and the Environment (RIFE) report series. These reports confirm that the environment and man are adequately protected, and that doses of radioactivity received by people and wildlife continue to be well within regulatory limits. The uncertainty in dose estimations is relatively low.
	For the wider north-east Atlantic, the UK works with other European states within the OSPAR convention (for the protection of the marine environment of the north-east Atlantic) to ensure that inputs and levels of radioactivity are reduced. OSPAR’s Quality Status Report 2010 assessment for the north-east Atlantic concludes that environmental concentrations and exposure of humans and biota to monitored radionuclides are low.
	In the particular case of Japan, there are currently no UK fishing vessels operating in Japanese Waters or waters adjacent to it. The Food Standards Agency has implemented Commission Regulation (EU) No. 297/2011 which applies EU-wide controls to prevent the import of food and feed which may be contaminated, including fish and fishery products, from Japan.

Water Charges: Billing

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much additional funding will be available to reduce water bills in the South West region in each of the next four financial years; and what her estimate is of the average reduction in affected household bills in each of those financial years.

Richard Benyon: The Government will consult shortly on proposals to address water affordability across England, including the south-west. This will include reforms to the existing WaterSure scheme, the approach to company social tariffs and options for additional Government spending to provide further support.
	We will carefully consider how to strike the right balance between using additional Government spending to assist households in the south-west, and assisting households with water affordability problems both inside and outside the south-west.

Water: Prices

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  when she plans to publish her consultation document on proposals to address water affordability in the south-west;
	(2)  what additional funds will be made available to address water affordability in the south-west;
	(3)  what estimate she has made of the likely change in level of water charges for the average household in the south-west as a result of implementation of the Government’s Budget proposals on water bills.

Richard Benyon: The Government will consult shortly on proposals to address water affordability across England, including the south-west. This will include reforms to the existing WaterSure scheme, the approach to company social tariffs and options for additional government spending to provide further support.
	We will carefully consider how to strike the right balance between using additional government spending to assist all households in the south-west and assisting households with water affordability problems both inside and outside the south-west.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Departmental Manpower

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the (a) job title and (b) pay grade is of each civil servant appointed to his Department since 11 May 2010.

Bob Neill: holding answer 30 March 2011
	The Department for Communities and Local Government headcount numbers have fallen from 2,108 in May 2010 to 2,000 in February 2011, a reduction of 108 staff, 5% of headcount.
	This is a net figure after the residual transfer of 69 staff from the Government office for London into the Department. In the same period, numbers of Department for Communities and Local Government employees in the Government office network fell by 207 to 324 as at February 2011.
	The net figure also includes approximately 30 staff who have returned to the Department from unpaid leave, loans and secondments.
	Staffing numbers in DCLG will fall further by around 700 when the selection and restructuring process is completed in 2012. This affects staff at all levels.
	I have interpreted ‘appointed’ to mean staff newly recruited to the civil service and Department on either a permanent or fixed-term contract. Since 11 May 2010, 39 civil servants have been appointed to the Department for Communities and Local Government.
	A breakdown of their job titles and pay grade bands as follows:
	1 x Administrative Officer.(National): £19,935 to £22,194
	3 x Administrative Officer (London): £23,218 to £25,847
	2 x Executive Officer (London): £24,951 to £30,162
	1 x Higher Executive Officer (London): £28,668 to £34,665
	2 x Legal Trainee (HEO equivalent): £25,709
	2 x Policy Advisor (HEO equivalent): £28,668 to £34,665
	17 x Fast Streamer (HEO equivalent): £27,000 to £35,000
	2 x Senior Executive Officer Audit (London): £37,732 to £45,734
	3 x Senior Planning Officer (SEO equivalent): £37,739 to £45,734
	2 x Grade 7 (Legal): £44,494 to £57,110
	1 x Grade 6 (London): £54,828 to £70,375
	1 x Permanent Secretary: £141,800 to £277,300
	2 x Special Advisers: £52,215 to £69,266.
	A total freeze on recruitment is now in place with the exception of a handful of very specialist posts that could not be filled internally.

Housing: Energy

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what discussions his Department had with the Department of Energy and Climate Change prior to the announcement that new homes will not be required to be zero carbon.

Grant Shapps: From 2016, all new homes will be required to be zero carbon. What we are not going to do is to try to build in how many electrical appliances such as plasma TVs a homeowner may have. However, these appliances are already covered by other arrangements such as the EU Emissions Trading Scheme, so this will have no impact on the Government’s carbon reduction strategy. What this will do is minimise costs to house builders, so protecting the viability and affordability of new housing, and helping house builders deliver the new homes the country needs.
	Policy to deliver Zero Carbon Homes from 2016 has been subject to collective consideration and agreement between interested Departments—including the Department of Energy and Climate Change—as is the case with all Government policy.

Housing: Rural Areas

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps his Department has taken to promote its Home on the Farm scheme.

Andrew Stunell: I would like to take this opportunity to thank my hon. Friend as the originator of this scheme, which provides a welcome opportunity for farmers and local authorities to work together to help to address the problems of rural affordable housing. I announced on 18 October that we are promoting the “Home on the Farm” scheme which encourages both parties to work together to secure the conversion of redundant and underused farm buildings to deliver affordable homes for local people. Officials have discussed the scheme with interested partners, such as the National Farmers Union and English Heritage, and we will continue to work with partners to promote the scheme.

Local Government: Finance

Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the formula grant to each local authority in absolute cash terms has been in each year since 2006-07.

Bob Neill: A table has been placed in the Library of the House showing the amount of formula grant received by each authority for the financial years 2006-07 to 2011-12. In addition, the provisional 2012-13 allocations have been provided.

Promotional Merchandise

Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much his Department spent on promotional merchandise between 2006 to May 2010; how many of each item of promotional merchandise were ordered; and how each such item was branded.

Bob Neill: The Department has historically purchased promotional items through the Central Office of Information (COI). COI records show the following DCLG spend through the COI merchandising framework over the last two years:
	
		
			 £ 
			 Date Item Cost VAT Total 
			 9 January 2009 100,000 x fridge magnets @ GBP 0.07 7,000.00 1,050.00 8,050.00 
			 9 January2009 100,000 x cornstarch bags @ GBP 0.15 15,000.00 2,250.00 17,250.00 
			 9 January 2009 100,000 x flexible PVC fridge magnets @ GBP 0.065 6,500.00 975.00 7,475.00 
		
	
	
		
			 22 January 2009 100,000 x Fire Kills cornstarch bags @ GBP 0.16 16,000.00 2,400.00 18,400.00 
			 18 February 2009 100,000 x Fire Kills pens @ GBP 0.14 14,000.00 2,100.00 16,100.00 
			 27 February 2009 200,000 x fridge magnets with Fire Kills artwork @ GBP 0.065 13,000.00 1,950.00 14,950.00 
			 25 March 2009 250 x 128mb twister USBs 40MB data upload @ GBP 2.65 each 662.50 99.38 761.88 
			 11 May 2009 30 x bella ladies T-shirts in Red with Fire Kills logo @ GBP 9.45 each 283.50 0.00 283.50 
			 29 May 2009 2,000 x Beer mats printed both sides with Fire Kills logo @ GBP 0.11 220.00 0.00 220.00 
			 29 July 2009 200,000 x Fire Kills pens @ GBP 0.13 each 26,000.00 3,900.00 29,900.00 
			 29 July 2009 200,000 x Fire Kills magnets @ GBP 0.065 each 13,000.00 1,950.00 14,950.00 
			 24 August 2009 3,000 x Star ball pens with three-colour RPTS print @ GBP 0.45 per unit 1,350.00 202.50 1,552.50 
			 4 September 2009 8,000 x magnetic word games printed with Plan Your Great Escape artwork @ GBP 0.42 each 3,360.00 504.00 3,864.00 
			 4 September 2009 4,000 x cotton shoppers printed with Plan Your Great Escape artwork @ GBP 0.78 each 3,120.00 468.00 3,588.00 
			 13 October 2009 10,000 x non-woven, eco friendly bags with one colour print @ GBP 0.70 each 7,000.00 1,050.00 8,050.00 
			 2009 total  126,496.00 18,898.88 145,394.88 
			      
			 1 March 2010 118,000 x 38mm button badges, printed with Extraordinary/I Can Save Lives designs 6,000.00 1,050.00 7,050.00 
			 1 March 2010 50,000 x PVC bespoke shape key rings with Extraordinary design @ GBP 0.28 per unit 14,000.00 2,450.00 16,450.00 
			 16 March 2010 200 x cotton shoppers, printed with three-colour logo to one side only @ GBP 1.35 per unit 270.00 47.25 317.25 
			 2010 total  20,270.00 3,547.25 23,817.25 
		
	
	A full breakdown for previous years is not available. However, the total spend for each year via the COI merchandising framework was as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
			 2006 44,262 
			 2007 56,530.70 
			 2008 46,911.50 
		
	
	No promotional items have been purchased since the formation of the new administration in May 2010. The COI merchandising framework is no longer in operation.

Public Expenditure

Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which bodies and individuals received funding from Government Offices for the Regions under his Department's (a) community resilience and (b) Preventing Violent Extremism funding streams in (i) 2009-10 and (ii) 2010-11; and what the (A) purpose and (B) monetary value of the payment was in each case.

Andrew Stunell: The Department for Communities and Local Government does not operate a separate funding stream for Community Resilience.
	The Government offices have had access to a fund of £750,000 per annum between 2008 and 2011 to build their capacity to support Prevent work in their regions. This money was provided to them from the Prevent division's programme funds.
	Owing to the quantity of data involved, details regarding the bodies and individuals that received funding from the Government offices for the regions under the Preventing Violent Extremism funding stream have been placed in the Library of the House.

Social Services

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether he has had recent discussions with the Secretary of State for Health on monitoring the quality of independent social care providers.

Bob Neill: Ministers in both Departments have regular discussions on matters of mutual interest, including social care.

Sustainable Development

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what mechanism he proposes to use to introduce a presumption of sustainable development in the local planning system.

Greg Clark: The Government intend to introduce a presumption in favour of sustainable development through national planning policy. The presumption will be a key feature of the National Planning Policy Framework, a full draft of which will be published for consultation in the summer.

TREASURY

Air Passenger Duty

Graham Stringer: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much income will accrue to the Exchequer from the auction of permits under the Aviation EU Emissions Trading Scheme in each of the next five years.

Justine Greening: The Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR) now publishes revenue forecasts independently. The OBR’s revenue forecast for all Emissions Trading Scheme receipts were set out in Table C3 of the Budget 2011 document. Aviation receipts are not separately identified in the OBR’s forecast.
	
		
			 Table C3: EU ETS auction receipts 
			  £ billion 
			 2011-12 0.3 
			 2012-13 0.7 
			 2013-14 2.0 
			 2014-15 2.1 
			 2015-16 22

Corporation Tax

Graeme Morrice: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the cost to the Exchequer in tax forgone of the reduction in the main rate of corporation tax to 26 per cent. in the period from 1 April 2011 to 1 January 2012.

David Gauke: The estimated impact on the Exchequer in tax foregone, of changes to the main rate of corporation tax as announced at Budget 2011, are set out in the following Budget 2011 document:
	http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/d/2011budget_policycostings.pdf

Counterfeit Manufacturing: Alcoholic Drinks

Roger Gale: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate his Department has made of the quantity of counterfeit branded spirits sold in the UK in each of the last three years; and what estimate he has made of the proportion of that quantity which (a) is manufactured within the UK and (b) enters the UK as imported or contraband alcohol and is subsequently re-bottled for sale as branded goods.

Justine Greening: HMRC does produce estimates of the volumes of illicit alcohol consumed in the UK and the revenue losses arising from that. However, the data available do not enable these estimates to be broken down by quantities of genuine and counterfeit product. The latest estimate for illicit spirits (relating to the year 2008-09) was published on the HMRC website on 16 September 2010, in the document “Measuring Tax Gaps 2010”. This document can be accessed online at:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/measuring-tax-gaps-2010.htm.pdf

Cycle to Work Scheme

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many employees of his Department are participating in the Cycle to Work scheme.

Justine Greening: HM Treasury encourages all its employees to choose environmentally friendly forms of transport to and from work in both its London and Norwich offices, and provides free secure storage and changing facilities for those who choose to do so. 29 employees participated in the Department’s last formal Cycle to Work Scheme which closed in 2009. The scheme for 2011 is currently being finalised.

Departmental Temporary Employment

Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many employees on temporary contracts (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) the non-departmental bodies for which he is responsible had in each of the last five years.

Justine Greening: The number of employees on temporary contracts within HM Treasury, the UK Debt Management Office and the Asset Protection Agency (APA) for each of the last five years is set out in the following table.
	
		
			  2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 
			 HM Treasury 80 74 74 89 93 
			 Debt Management Office 2 5 6 10 10 
			 Asset Protection Agency 0 0 0 0 19 
			 Note: The APA was established in 2009, and its costs are recharged in full to the Royal Bank of Scotland

Equitable Life

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he is taking to implement the recommendations of the parliamentary ombudsman’s report on Equitable Life.

Mark Hoban: The Government have accepted all the parliamentary ombudsman’s recommendations in full. The Government’s ambition is to start making payments in the middle of this year.
	The Government will provide details of the scheme to Parliament in the spring.

Green Investment Bank

William Bain: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what his policy is on granting the Green Investment Bank power to raise capital through borrowing during the comprehensive spending review period;
	(2)  whether he has plans to introduce (a) bonds and (b) individual savings accounts designed for small investors to invest capital in (i) environmental industries and (ii) the Green Investment Bank.

Justine Greening: holding answer 28 March 2011
	The Government are undertaking analysis into how investment in green industries can be increased.
	The Chancellor announced in the Budget that the Government will enable the Green Investment Bank to have borrowing powers from 2015-16 and once the target for debt to be falling as a percentage of GDP has been met.

Inheritance Tax

William Bain: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether individuals who donate their homes to charitable bodies but continue to reside within them as tenants will be eligible for the reduction in the rate of inheritance tax on their estates payable on their death should the value of such donations exceed 10 per cent. of the value of their estates.

Justine Greening: The Chancellor of the Exchequer announced in his recent Budget that the rate of inheritance tax would be reduced for those estates leaving 10% or more to charity. The Government will be consulting on the detail of the policy and how the policy will be implemented to ensure that charities get the maximum benefit and it is straightforward for taxpayers.

Landfill Communities Fund

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the performance of projects funded by the Landfill Communities Fund; what plans he has for the future of the fund; and if he will make a statement.

Justine Greening: The performance of Landfill Communities Fund projects is assured by an independent regulator, ENTRUST, using key performance indicators that are agreed in formal terms of approval set by HMRC.
	The Government are committed to ensuring that the valuable work supported by the Landfill Communities Fund continues to flourish. Therefore, in the Budget, the value of the fund in 2011-12 was increased in line with inflation to £78.1 million.
	To improve the efficiency of the fund in getting contributions into communities as quickly as possible, the Government have challenged environmental bodies to reduce the level of unspent funds that they hold.

Members: Correspondence

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the Chief Secretary to the Treasury plans to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Torbay of 17 September 2010 on behalf of his constituent Ms Claire Harding on the Every Disabled Child Matters campaign.

Justine Greening: I wrote to the hon. Member on 30 March.

State Retirement Pensions

Frank Field: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the Pre-Budget Report 2009, paragraph 5.45, whether the age at which pensioner benefits can be received will increase in line with his proposed increase in the state pension age.

Steve Webb: I have been asked to reply.
	The age at which pensioner benefits, such as pension credit and winter fuel payments, can be received is already set to increase in line with the female state pension age.
	This also includes the age of eligibility for the bus pass although local authorities, such as Merseytravel, which provides the Merseyside pass, can under certain circumstances provide discretionary travel schemes.
	Changes to the state pension age have not yet been reflected in the arrangements for prescription charge exemption and people are still eligible at age 60.

Taxation: Business

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many Wages Inspectorate visits have been made to (a) small, (b) medium and (c) large companies in each of the last six months.

David Gauke: holding answer 23 March 2011
	HMRC does not capture information on national minimum wage (NMW) cases on the basis of whether the company is small, medium or large.
	HMRC can provide information on the number of visits made to employers based on the number of workers shown in the following table:
	
		
			 Workers Visits carried out between September 2010 and February 2011 
			 1-10 437 
			 11-100 332 
			 101 + 115 
			 Not yet recorded 149 
			 Total 1,033

Taxation: Oil and Gas

Ann McKechin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he last met representatives of the oil and gas industry to discuss the taxation arrangements for oil and gas production.

Justine Greening: Treasury Ministers and officials meet representatives from a wide range of organisations and individuals in the public and private sector as part of the process of policy development and implementation. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government’s practice to provide details of all such meetings.

Taxation: Oil and Gas

Ann McKechin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the likely effect on (a) employment in Scotland and (b) investment in new oil production of his changes to taxation of the oil and gas industries.

Justine Greening: Recognising the importance of continued investment in the North sea, the Government will consider with the industry the case for introducing a new category of qualifying for field allowance.

Taxation: Oil and Gas

Ann McKechin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether any taper will apply to the supplementary charge on oil and gas profits if the price per barrel is between $75 and $100.

Justine Greening: As announced at Budget 2011, if the oil price falls below a set trigger price on a sustained basis, the Government will reduce the supplementary charge on a staged and affordable basis while prices remain low. The Government believe that a trigger price of $75 per barrel would be appropriate, but will set a final level and mechanism after seeking the views of oil and gas companies and motoring groups.

Urenco

Luciana Berger: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what contingency plans he has made should the sale of the UK shareholding in Urenco not realise the sum identified as necessary to fund the Green Investment Bank.

Justine Greening: The Government are considering a range of possible asset sales to fund the Green Investment Bank. To give information on expected proceeds from individual asset sales would prejudice the Government's commercial position in ongoing and future sale processes. However, at an aggregate level, the Government are confident that the asset sales they are considering will be sufficient to provide the £2 billion target.

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Green Investment Bank

Liz Kendall: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills when he plans to publish a business plan for the Green Investment Bank.

Vincent Cable: We will capitalise—with equity finance—the Green Investment Bank (GIB) with £2 billion on top of £1 billion of departmental funding already announced. The bank will be able to engage in borrowing when public finances are healthier. We intend to announce more details, including a business plan, in May.

Green Investment Bank

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate his Department has made of the amount of investment in green infrastructure that the Green Investment Bank will be generating in the comprehensive spending review period.

Mark Prisk: The Chancellor of the Exchequer announced in the 2011 Budget that the Green Investment Bank will be capitalised with £3 billion during this Parliament.
	We estimate that this capital could leverage up to £15 billion for green infrastructure by 2014-15.

Apprentices: Greater London

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many (a) adult and (b) youth apprenticeships were offered in the (i) public and (ii) private sector in London in each of the last five years.

John Hayes: holding answer 29 March 2011
	The following table shows the number of apprenticeship starts in England by age for 2005/06 to 2009/10, the latest year for which final data are available. Information on the number of apprenticeships offered in the public and private sector is not available.
	
		
			 Apprenticeship programme starts by age, 2005/05 to 2009/10 
			 Age 2005/06 2006/07 2007/08 2008/09 2009/10 
			 Under 19 99,500 105,600 107,600 99,400 116,800 
			 19+ 75,500 78,800 117,200 140,600 162,900 
			 Total 175,000 184,400 224,800 239,900 279,700 
			 Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 100. 2. Age is based on age at the start of the programme. Source: Individualised Learner Record 
		
	
	Information on the number of apprenticeship starts is published in a quarterly statistical first release (SFR). The latest SFR was published on 27 January 2011:
	http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/statistics/statisticalfirstrelease/sfr_current

Arms Trade: Exports

John Stanley: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to his answer of 9 March 2011, Official Report, column 1173W, on arms trade: exports, for which countries arms export licences have been revoked as a result of his Department’s review of export licences announced on 18 February 2011 since 15.00 on 3 March 2011; how many (a) individual and (b) open licences were revoked in respect of each country; and what the date of revocation was in each case.

Mark Prisk: The information is as follows:
	(a) For Standard Individual Export Licences (SIELs) one licence was revoked for Libya on 4 March;
	(b) For Open Individual Export Licences (OIELs) one licence with multiple destinations was amended on 4 March, revoking exports to the Country of Bahrain; and two licences with multiple destinations were amended on 9 March, both of which revoked exports to the Country of Bahrain.

Arts and Humanities Research Council

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions his Department has had with the Arts and Humanities Research Council on funding research into the Big Society; what assessment he has made of the compatibility of his proposals with the Haldane Principle; and if he will make a statement.

David Willetts: The Haldane Principle means that decisions on individual research proposals are taken by researchers themselves through peer review. A statement of the Principle was published alongside the science and research funding allocations on 20 December 2010:
	http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201011/cmhansrd/cm101220/wmstext/101220m0001.htm
	Every Government will have some key national strategic priorities. The research base has an important role to play in addressing such priorities and the research councils, with the support of independent advice, have proposed research programmes to tackle them. It is also appropriate for Ministers to ask research councils to consider how best they can contribute to these priorities without crowding out other areas of their missions. But it is for the research councils to decide on the specific projects and people to fund within these priorities, free from ministerial interference.
	The Arts and Humanities Research Council's (AHRC) Delivery Plan published in December 2010 was agreed in discussion with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. This sets out their strategic research priority areas. AHRC has been working since 2008, with four other research councils, on the Connected Communities Research Programme which has been developed through consultation with researchers. It has not been changed or modified in any way because of any intervention from Ministers: there has been none. At the core of this programme is research to understand the changing nature of communities in their historical and cultural contexts, and the value of communities in sustaining and enhancing our quality of life. These issues are also relevant to debates about the ‘Big Society’. The AHRC has made clear their position in a statement published on 28 March:
	http://www.ahrc.ac.uk/News/Latest/Pages/Observerarticle.aspx

Business

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what progress his Department is making on achieving the Government's aim of making the UK the best place in the world to start a business; what recent discussions he has had with the Confederation of British Industry on this matter; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Prisk: The UK is ranked as the 4th easiest economy out of 183 economies in the world in which to do business, according to the World Bank benchmarks published in November 2010, confirming our place as the best country in the G8 and Europe to do business. But there is no room for complacency and since last May we have introduced a number of measures to help achieve our aim of making the UK the best place in the world to start a business. These include:
	The Budget announced a general moratorium from all new domestic regulations for three years for businesses of less than 10 employees and for new start-ups.
	The Budget also introduced 21 new Enterprise Zones offering a package of benefits including a 100% business rate discount worth up to £275,000 over a five year period.
	From 6 April, Companies House will launch a new web incorporation service which will enable people to set up a simple company within a few hours for just £18-an important step towards the Government's aim of one-click registration.
	Alongside the launch of StartUp Britain, the ground-breaking response from the private sector to the Government's call for an enterprise-led recovery, we announced last week a package of announcements to help inspire, support and grow new businesses in the UK:
	support for every school to run its own business through the Enterprise Champions Programme.
	a major roll-out of Tenner Tycoon, the successful competition owned and run by the Peter Jones Foundation which gives young people the opportunity to take forward their business ideas.
	the creation of enterprise societies in every university and most further education colleges to develop students with the ambition and skills for enterprise.
	We have announced we will be changing the way we provide information, guidance and support to make it easier to start a business, revamping the www.businesslink.gov.uk website and introducing a national contact centre. In October we will be launching a new improved, and personalised, online support package for anyone who wants to start up in business. The Start- Up Hub will provide a range of tools and checklists, which have been tested by business customers and includes key elements of starting up such as business planning, as well as tax calculators and other help. It will be easy to access online information and guidance including simple ‘no nonsense guides’ to starting up in a variety of formats, and online training such as video workshops and case studies.
	We have announced that we will continue the Enterprise Finance Guarantee until 2014-15, providing up to £600 million of additional lending to around 6,000 SMEs next year, and subject to demand, over £2 billion in total over the next four years, helping to ensure businesses can access the finance they need.
	We are providing targeted support for specific groups:
	supporting the Royal British Legion's ‘Be the Boss’ scheme, which provides loans, grants and advice to UK service leavers to help them fund, plan and grow their own businesses.
	working with the Department for Work and Pensions to deliver a tailored package of measures, including an expansion in the planned New Enterprise Allowance, to help the unemployed become self employed.
	Working with mentoring providers to understand and address the barriers to enterprise for all groups, including women, former service personnel and Black, Asian and other Minority Ethnic (BAME) communities.
	Working with social landlords to remove red tape and encourage more tenants to start up businesses.
	From 6 April, a new prospective entrepreneur visa will be available and there will be changes to the entrepreneurs' visa to encourage more wealth and job creators to come to the UK.
	The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) is one of this Department's key corporate stakeholders, and Ministers and officials meet regularly with their CBI counterparts. I last met with John Cridland, the CBI's Director General, in early March, where we discussed many aspects of policy aimed at making the UK the best place in the world to start a business. These included planning, regulation and employment law. We also spoke on the afternoon of Budget day. The CBI welcomed the Budget overall and the accompanying growth review, particularly welcoming the measures on corporation tax, entrepreneurs' taxation, regulation, fuel duty and manufacturing.

Compensation

Richard Fuller: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much (a) his Department and its predecessors and (b) each (i) agency and (ii) non-departmental public body for which he is responsible spent on compensation payments to members of the public for errors made by such bodies in each of the last five years.

Edward Davey: Compensation payments are disclosed annually in the Department’s published accounts under the heading of special payments. Payments above £250,000 are detailed separately. Compensation payments made to members of the public for errors made are not recorded separately and the figures could be disaggregated only at disproportionate cost.
	Information for non-departmental public bodies is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	I have approached the chief executives of the Insolvency Service, Companies House, the National Measurement Office, Skills Funding Agency and the Intellectual Property Office and they will respond to my hon. Friend directly.
	Letter from Geoff Russell, dated 16 March 2011
	Thank you for your question addressed to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills asking how much the Skills Funding Agency (the Agency) spent on compensation payments to members of the public for errors made by the Agency in each of the last five years.
	Please be advised that the Agency has no record of any compensation payments made to members of the public recorded in the ledgers of the Learning and Skills Council (LSC), the predecessor to the Skills Funding Agency—up to 31 March 2010, nor in the ledgers of the Skills Funding Agency, the successor organisation to the LSC, from 1 April 2010 to date.
	Letter from Gareth Jones, dated 24 March 2011
	I am replying on behalf of Companies House to your Parliamentary Question tabled 14 March 2011, UIN 47425 to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills.
	As a Government department Companies House does not pay compensation. However; we will make payments for costs, known as ex gratia payments, where the costs are incurred as a direct result of an error made by Companies House. The amount of ex gratia payments for each of the last five years is as follows:
	
		
			  Amount (£) 
			 2006/07 12,897 
			 2007/08 23,860 
			 2008/09 17,724 
			 2009/10 34, 845 
			 2010/11 65,576 
			 Total 154,902 
		
	
	The figures for 2010/11 are for the year to date.
	Letter from John Alty, dated 15 March 2011
	I am responding in respect of the Intellectual Property Office to your Parliamentary Question tabled 14th March 2011 to the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
	The Intellectual Property Office generally does not pay compensation. Where the Office has not provided a service to the standard we and our customers expect an ex-gratia payment may be made. This generally is a refund of fees paid but can be more, to cover costs, in exceptional circumstances. The figures for the last five years are:
	
		
			  £ 
			 2006-07 6,083 
			 2007-08 14,322 
			 2008-09 3,737 
			 2009-10 8,231 
			 2010-11 (Feb) 2,314 
		
	
	Letter from Peter Mason, dated 22 March 2011
	I am responding in respect of the National Measurement Office (formerly National Weights and Measures Laboratory) to your Parliamentary Question tabled on 14 March 2011 reference 2010/4536 to the Secretary of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, asking how much his Department and its predecessors and each (a) agency and (b) non-departmental public body for which he is responsible spent on compensation payments to members of the public for errors made by such bodies in each of the last five years.
	The National Measurement Office has not spent any money on compensation payments to members of the public for errors in any of the last five years.
	Letter from Stephen Speed, dated 28 March 2011
	The Secretary of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has asked me to reply to your question how much his Department and its predecessors and each (a) agency and (b) non-departmental public body for which he is responsible spent on compensation payments to members of the public for errors made by such bodies in each of the last five years.
	The Insolvency Service, an Executive Agency of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, does not hold a breakdown of amounts paid for compensation to members of the public for errors. Where an official receiver acting as trustee or liquidator has not taken action as required by insolvency legislation in relation to an insolvency case, The Service may be liable to make a fruitless payment. Provisions for such payments are included in the notes to The Service’s Accounts published annually and laid in Parliament. The Service’s Annual Report and Accounts also includes any payments in respect of complaints that are upheld by the independent Adjudicator of complaints.

Enterprise Zones: Wales

Jonathan Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions he has had with the Welsh Assembly Government on the use of the enterprise zone model in Wales; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Prisk: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State visited Wales on Tuesday 29 March when the issue of enterprise zones was discussed at length with key representatives of the Welsh business sector.
	In addition, the Government wrote to the Welsh Assembly Government—as well as the Scottish Government and the Northern Ireland Executive—in advance of the Budget, setting out their commitment to work with the devolved Administrations to establish enterprise zones if they so wish. The Government remain ready to work with them on this and have made funding available in the Budget to support enterprise zones in the devolved Administrations through the Barnett formula.

Land: Bristol

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what plans he has for ownership of the land on which the SPark Bristol and Bath Science Park is located other than the National Corporate Centre Site following the closure of the South West Regional Development Agency.

Mark Prisk: The South West of England Development Agency’s detailed assets and liabilities plan is currently being scrutinised by Government. The Government expect information to be available in due course, once in principle decisions have been made on appropriate methods of disposal for particular types of assets. The Government anticipate the systematic disposal of the South West of England Development Agency’s assets and liabilities will begin shortly.

Local Enterprise Partnerships

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what proportion of the population of England is covered by local enterprise partnerships; what plans there are to extend coverage; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Prisk: To date, 32 partnerships have been approved. These represent:
	1.8 million or 90% of all businesses (active enterprises) in England;
	21 million employees (employee jobs figures) or 91% of all employees in England and;
	A population of 47 million or 90% of England's population.
	We welcome further proposals for areas not yet covered by partnerships and continue to work with them at a speed that is appropriate for them.

Local Enterprise Partnerships

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what role his Department has set for local enterprise partnerships in promoting (a) the automotive industry, (b) low-carbon technologies, including offshore wind farms and (c) biotechnology and the life sciences in their areas.

Mark Prisk: It is for local enterprise partnerships to decide their priorities, and where they have a particular strength in a sector in their locality such as in automotive, low carbon or life sciences they may well wish to promote that sector. The Government have already made clear that they will share information and work with partnerships on such issues if they would find that helpful.

Members: Correspondence

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills when he plans to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Torbay of 14 December 2010 on behalf of the Devon Education Business Partnership regarding work experience placements.

Tim Loughton: I have been asked to reply.
	The Minister of State for Schools, my hon. Friend the Member for Bognor Regis and Littlehampton (Mr Gibb), replied to my hon. Friend on 29 March 2011.

New Businesses: Scotland

John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much funding will be allocated to (a) Scotland, (b) Glasgow North West constituency and (c) Glasgow city under the StartUp Britain initiative.

Mark Prisk: StartUp Britain does not receive Government funding.
	It is an initiative for business, led and funded by business.

Northern Way: Expenditure

Alan Beith: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much the Northern Way project spent; and what evaluation he has made of the project's performance in meeting its objectives.

Mark Prisk: The Northern Way formed in 2004 and is a partnership between One North East, Yorkshire Forward and Northwest Development Agency. Its forecast total spend is £126 million covering two phases, 2004-08 (£100 million) and 2008-11 (£26 million).
	An evaluation of the first phase was published in April 2009. An evaluation of the second phase was initiated in March 2009. An interim report was published in June 2010 and the final report will be issued in April 2011. The reports can be found at:
	http://www.thenorthernway.co.uk/page.asp?id=812
	The partnership will formally close on 31 March 2011.

Re-Export Control Bill [HL] 2010-11

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent representations he has received on referring the Re-Export Control Bill [Lords] to a Second Reading Committee; what his policy is on such references; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Prisk: The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, my right hon. Friend the Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable) received a letter from my hon. Friend the Member for Banbury (Tony Baldry) on 4 March on this issue.
	My noble Friend the Parliamentary Secretary for Business, Innovation and Skills expressed the Government's reservations about the Re-Export Controls Bill during its Second Reading in the House of Lords on 3 December. The Government intend to set out its position on the Bill during Second Reading in the House of Commons, which is currently scheduled for 13 May.

Regional Growth Fund: Poole

Robert Syms: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many applications to the Regional Growth Fund have been received from organisations based in Poole constituency.

Mark Prisk: Four hundred and sixty-four bids to the value of £2.78 billion have been received in Round 1 of Regional Growth Fund (RGF). No bids have come directly from the Poole area.

Service Industries: Minimum Wage

Michael Connarty: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent representations he has received on the operation of the national minimum wage in the hospitality industry.

Edward Davey: I met with the hon. Member for Linlithgow and East Falkirk on 21 March 2011 to discuss national minimum wage enforcement in the hospitality industry. I am considering the issues raised at this meeting and shall be writing to the hon. Member shortly.

Small Businesses: Recruitment

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he is taking to encourage small and medium-sized enterprises to employ staff; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Prisk: The Government have announced plans to promote employment by reducing the cost of hiring and retaining staff.
	We raised the threshold for employer NICs, increasing the number of employees for whom employers pay no contributions, and introduced a national insurance contributions (NICs) holiday scheme.
	We have also made good progress on our Parliament-long review of employment laws—including proposed reforms to the employment tribunals system, which should make it easier and more attractive to take people on.

Students: Loans

Esther McVey: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he plans to take to ensure that all student loans eligible for repayment are repaid in full following implementation of the increased maximum chargeable amount in tuition fees.

David Willetts: Borrowers who remain in the UK and work here will have their loans recovered through the UK tax system.
	For those borrowers who move abroad, whether temporarily or because they live in another country, the Student Loans Company (SLC) has established repayment arrangements and will ask for information about earnings and give the borrower a monthly repayment schedule under the terms of the contract of the loan.
	The progressive system of student loans to be introduced in the 2012/13 academic year links repayments to earnings, with the effect that high earners will repay the full cost, or more, of their tuition.
	The £21,000 income threshold will offer protection to those who do not go on to earn high wages or have periods out of employment.
	After 30 years all former students will have any outstanding balance written off. Under this system, around a quarter of former students with the lowest lifetime earnings will repay less overall than former students under the current system do now.

Tobacco: Sales

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether the Reducing Regulation Committee has discussed proposals for the future display of tobacco products in shops.

Mark Prisk: Information relating to the proceedings of Cabinet Committee, including items on the agenda, is generally not disclosed, as to do so could harm the frankness and candour of internal Government discussion.

WHO Global Influenza Surveillance Network

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what his policy is on the retention of the UK's role of hosting a WHO collaborating centre as part of the WHO Global Influenza Surveillance Network.

David Willetts: The Medical Research Council (MRC) is one of the main agencies through which the Government support medical and clinical research, including research relating to influenza. The MRC is a non-departmental public body which receives its grant in aid from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
	The World Health Organisation (WHO) Influenza Centre at the MRC National Institute for Medical Research is one of five WHO Collaborating Centres for Reference and Research on Influenza. MRC support for the centre is subject to scientific peer review and is assessed every five years by MRC as part of their ongoing programme of review for MRC research units and institutes. This assessment takes account of scientific expertise, links with other organisations nationally and internationally including WHO, the Health Protection Agency, the (US) Center for Disease Control and Prevention and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.
	The MRC is currently conducting the five-yearly review of the National Institute for Medical Research (NIMR), and decisions on support for the centre for the coming five years will be taken as part of this review. The MRC expects to complete the institute review during 2011-12.
	In keeping with the Haldane Principle, prioritisation of an individual Research Council's spending within its allocation is not a decision for Ministers.

EDUCATION

Academies

Richard Fuller: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what process he has put in place by which an independent school may become an academy.

Nick Gibb: An independent school wanting to become an Academy should follow the Free School application process, which has been open to them since its launch in June.
	Applications from independent schools are considered alongside applications for new schools. All applications must meet minimum criteria. In order to ensure only the best independent schools are considered for the Free Schools programme, independent school applicants must meet additional criteria, set out on our website at:
	www.education.gov.uk/freeschools
	The minimum criteria that independent schools must meet in order to be considered are:
	The latest inspection judgment on the school should be either good or better;
	There should be no significant outstanding issues on compliance with independent schools standards; and
	The existing Trust has a good track record of managing their accounts.
	The Department will also take into account a range of contextual factors to make a judgment on whether the school will provide value for money and high quality places.

Apprentices: Finance

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Education on which dates Ministers in his Department have made announcements on (a) the creation of apprenticeship places and (b) funding to be allocated to apprenticeships since May 2010.

John Hayes: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given on 14 February, 2011, Official Report, columns 562-3W which I answered as Minister with responsibility for apprenticeships in both the Department for Education and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.

Children: Carers

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what information his Department holds of the number and proportion of children who are carers in each (a) region and (b) socio-economic group.

Tim Loughton: Precise local and national data on the number and proportion of children who are carers in each region of the UK and socio-economic group are not held centrally. However the 2001 Census estimates that there are approximately 175,000 children in the UK aged 17 or under offering some care to a family member, neighbour or friend. More up to date census data will be available later in the year.

Departmental Expenditure: Film Production

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much his Department has spent on film production, including the filming of speeches, since May 2010.

Tim Loughton: Since May 2010 the Department has spent £4,565.00 on film production.

Departmental Manpower

John Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many (a) actual and (b) full-time equivalent staff his Department employed on the latest date for which figures are available.

Tim Loughton: As at March 2011, the number of staff employed by the Department for Education is 2,605 or 2,484.4 full-time equivalent (FTE).
	Similar headcount information (from the latest data available in March 2011) for the Department's arm’s length bodies is set out in the following table:
	
		
			 Name Organisation Headcount Full-time equivalent 
			 British Educational Communications and Technology Agency (BECTA) Non-departmental public body (NDPB) 9 9 
			 Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (CAFCASS) NDPB 1,997 1,680.0 
			 Children's Workforce Development Council (CWDC) NDPB 164 197.0 
			 General Teaching Council for England (GTCE) Corporation 175 218.8 
			 National College (NC) NDPB 326 293.9 
			 Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation (Ofqual) NDPB 163 160.0 
			 Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) Non-ministerial Government Department 1,615 1,566.1 
			 Partnerships for Schools (PfS) NDPB 168 162.3 
			 Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency (QCDA) NDPB 363 360.0 
			 School Food Trust (SFT) NDPB(1) 72 70.8 
			 Training and Development Agency (TDA) NDPB(2) 311 308.0 
			 Young People's Learning Agency (YPLA) NDPB 534 520.6 
			 Office of the Children's Commissioner (OCC) NDPB 27 27 
			 Total — 5,934 5,573.5 
			 1 Until end March 2011 2 Executive agency from 1 April 2012

Departmental Telephone Services

David Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the answer of 22 March 2011, Official Report, columns 1034-35W, on departmental telephone services, what steps are being taken within the specification outlined to facilitate the qualification of small voluntary sector organisations under the terms for contracted services; and if he will make a statement.

Tim Loughton: holding answer 30 March 2011
	The Home Office in liaison with OGC and other Government Departments has developed the good practice guidance on procuring services from the voluntary and community sector (VCS). The primary focus of the guidance is to improve the participation of the VCS in public service contracts but it is also highly relevant to procurement relationships with small to medium enterprises and black and minority ethnic enterprises.
	The Department for Education (DfE) fully supports the use of the good practice guidance and recognises that the voluntary and community sector can make a significant contribution to the delivery of our policies. The Department's procurement policy requires that all procurement must be based on value for money (VFM), however, VFM and supplier diversity are not in opposition to each other and public procurement is generally more effective if it is open to ideas from all potential supply markets. The guidance is not about giving preferential treatment to VCS organisations; rather, it is about opening up opportunities and building effective relationships. We are also complying with the actions suggested by ERG and BIS—Growth Review:
	http://cdn.hm-treasury.gov.uk/2011budget_growth.pdf
	to help encourage SMEs and VCS's, e.g. reducing use of Pre Qualification Questionnaires (PQQs) for sub-threshold procurements and meeting the Governments transparency requirements.
	To support the transparency agenda, all DfE tenders and contracts over £10,000 are advertised on the Contracts Finder website which provides access and guidance to public sector contracting. Contracts Finder is a free new service for businesses, Government buyers and the public. This service comes from Government under their transparency commitment, and you can find live contract opportunities, tender documentation, contract awards and contract documents.

Finance

Tony Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much funding his Department allocated to local authorities in Greater Manchester for capital expenditure (a) in 2010-11 and (b) in each of the last five years.

Nick Gibb: holding answer 30 March 2011
	The following table sets out capital support for schools in the Greater Manchester area from 2005-06 to 2010-11 (provisional):
	
		
			 £ million 
			  2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 (provisional) 
			 Bolton 13.0 17.5 22.4 14.3 35,7 39.4 
			 Bury 8.0 10.7 14.5 12.0 16.4 16.7 
			 Manchester 83.5 59.7 124.3 83.3 115.4 153.9 
			 Oldham 17.2 13.2 13.5 14.0 21.5 40.5 
			 Rochdale 10.0 10.3 11.4 13.0 31.7 44.2 
		
	
	
		
			 Salford 12.5 13.5 21.1 11.9 20.5 21.1 
			 Stockport 14.8 12.3 13.0 13.1 24.7 15.4 
			 Tameside 14.2 12.7 18.3 20.6 44.5 20.6 
			 Trafford 11.0 10.2 18.9 23.3 18.9 25.6 
			 Wigan 14.0 16.8 24.5 38.3 31.3 20.1 
			 Total Greater Manchester 198.2 176.9 281.9 243.8 360.8 397.5 
		
	
	The figures in the table include capital grant and supported borrowing allocations, but exclude PFI credits.

Flexible Working: Parental Leave

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment his Department has made of the effect on early childhood development of (a) flexible working and (b) maternity and paternity leave.

Sarah Teather: The Department has made no explicit assessment of the direct effect on early childhood development of flexible working and maternity and paternity leave.
	However, there are studies which the Department has commissioned, funded or is aware of which look explicitly at the effect of the home learning environment and parental involvement on childhood development.
	The Effective Provision of Pre-School Education (EPPE) Project, after controlling for parents’ occupations and education, aspects of the home learning environment were found to have a significant impact on children's cognitive development both at age 3 years plus and again at school entry. The frequency with which the child plays with letters/numbers at home was linked with attainment in all measures. Parents’ drawing children’s attention to sounds and letters was linked to literacy skills, early number skills and non-verbal attainment.
	The final report from EPPE is available here:
	http://www.education.gov.uk/publications/standard/publicationdetail/page1/DCSF-00924-2008
	‘The National Literacy Trust Face to Face’ research project, October 2010, was commissioned to identify key messages for parents and carers in relation to communicating with babies and young children and examined the most effective ways to promote these messages. The review found that there is general agreement that infants are predisposed to communicate, reciprocate and connect with other people. Key areas were identified in relation to the aspects of parenting that matter in relation to communicating with babies. More information on the study and the key findings can be found at:
	http://www.literacytrust.org.uk/assets/0000/6771/F2F_management_summary.pdf
	‘The Impact of Parental Involvement on Children’s Education’, DCSF 2008, provides a summary of some of the research evidence on the impact of parental involvement on children’s education, the stages at which it is know to have an impact, and the types of activities which are influential. Overall, research has consistently shown that parental involvement in children’s education does make a positive difference to pupils’ achievement, as follows:
	Parental involvement with children from an early age has been found to equate with better outcomes; particularly in terms of cognitive development. (Sylva et al (2004) Effective pre-School Education. Final report. DFES.)
	Evidence indicates that a relationship exists between parental involvement and achievement, and that this continues to have a significant effect into adolescence and even adulthood, even when the background factors such as class and family size have been taken into account. (Desforges et al (2003) ‘The Impact of Parental involvement, Parental Support and Family Education on Pupil Achievement and Adjustment: A Literature Review’. DCSF).
	Evidence suggests that the quality and content of fathers’ involvement matter more for children’s outcomes than the quantity of time fathers spend with their children. (Goldman, R (2005). ‘Fathers’ involvement in their Children’s Education’. National Family and Parenting Institute.) There is consistent evidence that fathers’ interest and involvement in learning is statistically associated with better outcomes, (ibid)
	In 2007 two thirds of parents said that they would like to get more involved in the child's school life. Work commitments were the most frequently cited barrier by parents (44%) from getting more involved. (Peters et al (2008) Parental Involvement in Children's Education 2007. DCSF).
	The report is available here:
	http://www.education.gov.uk/publications/standard/publicationdetail/page1/DCSF-00924-2008
	Analysis of data collected from the British Household Panel Survey (1991-97) found a negative and significant effect on the child’s educational attainment as a young adult of the mother's full-time employment when the child was aged 0-5.
	The effect of mother’s part-time employment is also negative but smaller and less well determined. Similarly, the effect of father’s employment is small but again negative. More information on the analysis can be found in ‘The Effect of Parents’ Employment on Children’s Educational Attainment’, John Ermisch and Marco Francesconi, 2000, available here:
	http://www.iser.essex.ac.uk/publications/working-papers/iser/2000-31.pdf

Free Schools

Mike Gapes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what requirements there are for public consultation on the location of free schools.

Nick Gibb: The duty to consult on the establishment of a Free School is set out under Section 10 of the Academies Act 2010.

Free Schools: Admissions

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether free schools will be obliged to adopt fair admissions criteria which place emphasis on increasing access to high quality education for children from all backgrounds.

Nick Gibb: All Free Schools are required, through their funding agreements, to follow the Admissions Code which aims to ensure that all school places are allocated and offered in an open and fair way.
	The law requires that Free Schools provide places for children of all abilities who are mainly from the area in which the school is situated.

Free Schools: Wellingborough

Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many applications to establish a free school in (a) Wellingborough constituency, (b) Northamptonshire and (c) England his Department has received since May 2010.

Nick Gibb: holding answer 18 March 2011
	As at 23 March 2011, a total of 323 free school proposals have been received from groups and individuals in England. Of these, three proposals are from Northamptonshire but none from the Wellingborough constituency.

GCSE

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many and what proportion of (a) all pupils, (b) pupils eligible for free school meals and (c) pupils not eligible for free school meals achieved A* to C grades at GCSE in (i) English language, (ii) mathematics, (iii) two sciences, (iv) a language, (v) a humanity and (vi) all five of these subjects in each year since 1997.

Nick Gibb: The available information is given in the following table.
	
		
			 Number of pupils  (1)   achieving A*-CGCSE grades by free school meal eligibility years: 2009 (final data) to 2010 (amended data), coverage: England, maintained schools (including Academies and CTCs) 
			  Pupils known to be eligible for free school meals Pupils not eligible for free school meals All pupils  (2) 
			  2009 2010 2009 2010 2009 2010 
			 All pupils:       
			  74,419 77,324 504,377 500,640 578,840 578,063 
			 Achieving A*-C grades by subject:       
			 English       
			 Number 27,905 33,178 329,914 349,405 357,846 382,649 
			 Percentage of pupils 37.5 42.9 65.4 69.8 61.8 66.2 
			        
			 Mathematics       
			 Number 26,075 30,625 312,568 329,997 338,673 360,685 
			 Percentage of pupils 35.0 39.6 62.0 65.9 58.5 62.4 
			        
			 At least two sciences(3)       
			 Number 15,950 17,604 239,183 246,095 255,142 263,725 
			 Percentage of pupils 21,4 22.8 47.4 49.2 44.1 45.6 
			        
			 Humanities(4)       
			 Number 9,115 9,997 172,973 174,082 182,098 184,095 
			 Percentage of pupils 12.2 12.9 34.3 34.8 31.5 31.8 
			        
			 Modern Languages(5)       
			 Number 10,156 10,420 151,824 150,851 161,990 161,299 
			 Percentage of pupils 13.6 13.5 30.1 30.1 28.0 27.9 
			        
			 All of the above subjects       
			 Number 2,859 3,169 83,842 84,931 86,701 88,107 
			 Percentage of pupils 3.8 4.1 16.6 17.0 15.0 15.2 
			 (1) Number of pupils at the end of Key Stage 4. (2) Includes pupils for whom free school meal eligibility could not be determined. (3) Pupils who achieved A*-C at Double award Science GCSE, in both (Core Science or Single Science) and Additional Science GCSEs or in at least two of the following subjects: Physics, Chemistry, Biological Science. (4) Pupils who achieved A*-C at GCSE in History, Geography or both subjects. There is no set definition of ‘Humanities', this definition is in line with the proposed English Baccalaureate. (5) Pupils who achieved A'-C at GCSE in at least one of the following subjects: French, German, Spanish, Dutch, Italian, Modern Greek, Portuguese, Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, Gujarati, Japanese, Modern Hebrew, Panjabi, Polish, Russian, Turkish, Urdu, Persian. Source: National Pupil Database 
		
	
	The additional data are not currently available, the Department will be conducting new analysis to prepare the data from 2003 and will place a copy in the House Libraries once it has been completed and write to the hon. Member. However, pupil level characteristics data are not available before 2002.

Industrial Health and Safety

Alok Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what progress his Department has made in reviewing the health and safety regulations for which it is responsible since his appointment.

Tim Loughton: The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has responsibility for Health and Safety regulations within the UK and it is their responsibility to review their regulations. HSE has not announced a significant change in the regulations. There are no health and safety regulations which are aimed specifically at the education system. Where health and safety regulations have an impact upon the education system or working environment the Department for Education continues to have an active dialogue with the HSE to ensure that the regulations that apply have good guidance and are applied proportionately.

Marriage Guidance: Finance

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he plans to take to (a) put funding for relationship support on a stable, long-term footing and (b) encourage couples to access existing relationship support.

Tim Loughton: In his speech on 10 December, the Prime Minister announced that the Government will dedicate £7.5 million a year over each of the next four years to supporting relationships. This will put funding for relationship support on a stable footing. (Through “Improving outcomes for children, young people and families: a National Prospectus” my Department has invited organisations to apply for grants for relationship support, including “work to encourage couples to take up preventative support to develop and sustain their relationship” as one of its priorities for this dedicated funding.)

Public Bodies: Reform Programme

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether the powers of those bodies that are proposed for abolition in the Education Bill will be transferred to the Secretary of State following the closure of those bodies.

Tim Loughton: In all cases the Secretary of State will be taking on some of the powers, apart from the School Support Staff Negotiating Body, where he is taking on none.
	The new delivery model will also produce tangible benefits for schools, governors, teachers, parents, children and the public, by allowing more resource to be directed at the front line, where it matters most. The greater coherence and accountability of the system will enable our customers to see more clearly who is accountable for what, and to speak more directly to Government about their concerns. Instead of having several, sometimes conflicting, voices from official agencies giving different versions of the Government’s policy, there will be a single clear message coming direct from Government. The abolition of several ALBs signals an end to centralised control over aspects of education where there is no need for the government to be involved, and supports greater devolution to localities and the front line, enabling more decisions to be taken by schools themselves, rather than by intermediate bodies The creation of executive agencies, rather than simply bringing the delivery functions into the Department, is also aimed at safeguarding independence in areas where this is important.

Pupils: Bullying

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  for what reasons no mention was made of transphobic bullying in sections 3.6, 3.19 and 3.20 of the Schools White Paper, “The Importance of Teaching”; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  if he will ensure that information on where to seek guidance on how to deal with transphobic bullying will be included in the proposed new anti-bullying in schools guidance; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Gibb: The Government are committed to tackling all forms of bullying particularly those motivated by prejudice. We want every school to have a strong ethos on good behaviour which includes a culture of respect and acceptance among pupils, staff and the rest of the school community. The Schools White Paper, ‘The Importance of Teaching’, is a wide-ranging document which sets out the Government’s overall approach to different aspects of education, one being behaviour. In that chapter, we made it very clear that schools should not tolerate any form of prejudice-based bullying, regardless of motivation.
	Homophobic bullying was cited as an example of bullying which is prevalent and often not tackled effectively. However in developing anti-bullying strategies, school staff should assess the particular motivations behind bullying in their schools including, where appropriate, any transphobic bullying, and incorporate those issues accordingly.
	Our proposed new short advice to schools on preventing and tackling bullying will highlight transphobic bullying as one of the types of prejudice-based bullying schools should address. This advice will also signpost schools to further resources from external organisations who are experts in transgender issues. Officials have been working with a range of organisations in developing this advice.

School Sport Partnerships

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for the Home Department on the likely effects on levels of youth crime of ending the funding for the School Sport Partnership prior to taking his decision to do so.

Tim Loughton: The Secretary of State has not had any discussions with the Home Office about the likely effects on levels of youth crime of the changes to school sports funding. However, this Department works closely with other Departments with an interest in taking forward the new approach to school sport.
	Funding of £47 million has been paid to school sport partnerships to fund their work up until the end of the summer term 2011. Ring-fenced funding for partnerships will not continue beyond then. Instead, the Department is making available £65 million of new funding for schools to enable them to provide more opportunities for competitive sport. The funding will cover the school years 2011/12 and 2012/13, and will pay for one day a week of a secondary PE teacher's time to be spent out of the classroom, encouraging greater take up of competitive sport in primary schools and securing a fixture network for schools to increase the amount of intra- and inter-school competition.
	In addition, at the Sports Colleges Conference in February, the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport announced outline plans for a network of School Games Organisers from September 2011. These organisers will be funded by the Department of Health and Sport England for three days a week to help schools sign up for the nationwide school games. Further details on the funding for these organiser posts and their precise roles will be announced shortly.

School Sports

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much of his Department's budget for funding for school buildings and facilities he expects to be spent on sports facilities; and if he will make a statement.

Tim Loughton: Decisions on the amount of capital funding to be spent on school sports facilities are for schools and local authorities. The Secretary of State would expect them to take into account the need for sufficient and adequate facilities for physical education and sport when making these decisions.

School Sports

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what estimate he has made of the likely number of redundancies arising from his Department’s reduction in expenditure on school sport in the school year 2011-12.

Tim Loughton: holding answer 31 January 2011
	Staff who make up the previous Administration’s PE and sport strategy are employed by a mixture of schools, local authorities and others, and the Department does not collect redundancy information from these bodies.

Science: Secondary Education

Julian Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment his Department has made of prospects for the future of science teaching in schools at (a) Key Stage 3, (b) GCSE and (c) A-level.

Nick Gibb: Our White Paper, “The Importance of Teaching”, and subsequent announcements have set out the Government’s plans for comprehensive reform of school curriculum, qualifications and teacher supply. These reforms will lay the foundations for improving teaching at all stages, including Key Stage 3, GCSE and A levels, and ensure that standards in science, and those for other subjects, match those of the best performing countries.
	In addition, the White Paper confirmed that we will provide targeted support specifically to tackle long-standing problems in science and mathematics education. We will support programmes to improve the supply of specialist science teachers and ensure that they can develop their subject knowledge and teaching skills during their careers. We will also support schools in improving the take-up, teaching and achievement in the most demanding and rigorous science options such as GCSE Triple Science, and A level Physics and Further Mathematics. We will be announcing in due course our detailed polices, programmes and funding to secure these objectives.

Special Educational Needs

David Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to his Green Paper on special educational needs, when he plans to publish the national special educational needs and disabilities voluntary and community sector prospectus.

Sarah Teather: holding answer 18 March 2011
	“Support and aspiration: A new approach to special educational needs and disability” signals a significant involvement for the voluntary and community and social enterprise sector (VCS) in taking forward proposed reforms.
	“Support and aspiration” explains our intent shortly to issue an SEN and Disability prospectus which will set out the key areas in which we will make funding available and guidance for organisations that wish to bid for grants or contracts.
	We have already provided £6.5 million to SEN and Disability VCS organisations for projects which will start in April 2011 following an earlier exercise which began in November 2010.

Special Educational Needs

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what data his Department holds on the number and proportion of school pupils with each type of special educational need in (a) Ashfield constituency, (b) Nottinghamshire and (c) England.

Sarah Teather: Pupils with special educational needs comprise those at School Action, School Action Plus or with statements of special educational needs.
	School Action is where extra or different help is given from that provided as part of the school's usual curriculum. School Action Plus is where the class teacher and the SEN coordinator receive advice or support from outside specialists (the specialist teacher, an educational psychologist, a speech and language therapist or other health professionals). A pupil has a statement of special educational needs when a formal assessment has been made. A document setting out the child's needs and the extra help they should receive is in place.
	The information requested is shown in the following table for pupils at School Action Plus or with statements of special educational needs. Information on type of need for pupils at School Action is not collected.
	The latest available information on the primary need of pupils with special educational needs can be found in the “Special Educational Needs in England” Statistical First Release in Table 11:
	http://www.education.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000939/index.shtml
	
		
			 Maintained primary, state-funded secondary and special schools  (1,2,3)  : Number and percentage of pupils with special educational   needs (SEN) by type of need  (4,5 )  January 2010—Ashfield parliamentary constituency, Nottinghamshire local authority and England 
			  Pupils with SEN at School Action Plus 
			  Ashfield parliamentary constituency Nottinghamshire local authority England 
			  Number %  (6) Number %  (6) Number %  (6) 
			 Specific learning difficulty 40 6.1 420 8.3 67,760 13.9 
		
	
	
		
			 Moderate learning difficulty 120 19.4 970 19.2 130,460 26.8 
			 Severe learning difficulty 30 4.9 130 2.6 3,490 0.7 
			 Profound and multiple learning difficulty (7)— (7)— 30 0.5 710 0.1 
			 Behaviour, emotional and social difficulties 160 27.5 1,520 30.1 128,250 26.3 
			 Speech, language and communications 80 14.0 600 11.8 85,780 17.6 
			 Hearing impairment 10 1.5 90 1.8 9,100 1.9 
			 Visual impairment 20 2.5 90 1.7 4,920 1.0 
			 Multi-sensory impairment (7)— (7)— 10 0.2 410 0.1 
			 Physical disability 30 4.6 260 5.1 12,210 2.5 
			 Autistic spectrum disorder 100 16.0 670 13.2 16,930 3.5 
			 Other difficulty/disability 20 2.5 280 5.5 27,110 5.6 
			 Total 590 100.0 5,060 100.0 487,120 100.0 
		
	
	
		
			  Pupils with statements of SEN 
			  Ashfield parliamentary constituency Nottinghamshire local authority England 
			  Number %  (6) Number %  (6) Number %  (6) 
			 Specific learning difficulty (7)— (7)— 30 2.1 11,850 5.7 
			 Moderate learning difficulty 50 23.3 190 15.7 38,120 18.2 
			 Severe learning difficulty 20 11.9 200 16.3 25,280 12.1 
			 Profound and multiple learning difficulty (7)— (7)— 80 6.8 8,770 4.2 
			 Behaviour, emotional and social difficulties 20 9.8 140 11.3 29,760 14.2 
			 Speech, language and communications 10 3.1 110 8.7 27,620 13.2 
			 Hearing impairment 0 0.0 20 1.6 6,420 3.1 
			 Visual impairment (7)— (7)— 10 1.2 3,660 1.7 
			 Multi-sensory impairment (7)— (7)— (7)— (7)— 470 0.2 
			 Physical disability 50 27.5 100 8.5 14,270 6.8 
			 Autistic spectrum disorder 30 14.0 310 25.7 39,320 18.8 
			 Other difficulty/disability 10 3.6 20 1.8 3,910 1.9 
			 Total 190 100.0 1,210 100.0 209,440 1000 
			 (1) Includes middle schools as deemed.  (2) Includes city technology colleges and academies.  (3) Includes maintained and non-maintained special schools. Excludes general hospital schools.  (4) Excludes dually registered pupils.  (5) Pupils at School Action Plus and those pupils with a statement of SEN provided information on their primary need and, if appropriate, their secondary need. Information on primary need only is given here.  (6) Number of pupils by their primary need expressed as a percentage of all pupils at School Action Plus or with a statement of SEN.  (7) Fewer than five pupils or a rate based on fewer than five pupils.  Note:  Totals may not appear to equal the sum of the component parts because numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10.  Source:  School Census.

Special Educational Needs

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what information his Department holds on the number and proportion of school children diagnosed with each type of special educational need resident in (a) Bolton South East constituency, (b) Bolton, (c) Greater Manchester and (d) England.

Nick Gibb: The Department holds information on the number and proportion of school children diagnosed with each type of special educational need. This information can also be broken down by the type of school, and that information, along with information for all schools, has been provided in the following table:
	
		
			 All schools  (1,2,3)  , maintained primary  (1)  , state-funded secondary  (1,2)   and special schools  (3)  : Number and percentage of pupils by type of special educational need  (4,5)  —January 2010 final, England 
			  Pupils with SEN by their primary type of need  (1,2) 
			  Bolton South East parliamentary constituency Bolton local authority district Greater Manchester England  (6) 
			  No. %  (7) No. %  (7) No. %  (7) No. %  (7) 
			 All schools(3)         
			 Specific Learning Difficulty 70 5.1 200 6.2 3,580 10.5 79,570 11.4 
			 Moderate Learning Difficulty 560 41.6 1,220 38.3 10,270 30.0 168,560 24.2 
			 Severe Learning Difficulty 60 4.5 160 5.0 1,790 5.2 28,760 4.1 
			 Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulty 30 2.1 60 2.0 680 2.0 9,470 1.4 
			 Behaviour, Emotional and Social Difficulties 260 19.4 660 20.9 7,370 21.5 157,960 22.7 
		
	
	
		
			 Speech, Language and Communication Needs 130 9.5 300 9.4 4,210 12.3 113,380 16.3 
			 Hearing Impairment 50 3.3 110 3.4 810 2.4 15,500 2.2 
			 Visual Impairment 20 1.6 50 1.6 440 1.3 8,560 1.2 
			 Multi-Sensory Impairment — — — 0.1 50 0.1 870 0.1 
			 Physical Disability 50 3.7 110 3.4 1,190 3.5 26,470 3.8 
			 Autistic Spectrum Disorder 90 6.8 250 8.0 2,280 6.7 56,240 8.1 
			 Other Difficulty/Disability 30 2.2 60 1.7 1,540 4.5 31,000 4.5 
			 Total 1,350 100.0 3,170 100.0 34,190 100.0 696,340 100.0 
			          
			 Maintained primary schools(1)         
			 Specific Learning Difficulty 20 3.6 80 5.5 1,520 9.3 33,460 10.2 
			 Moderate Learning Difficulty 310 47.4 630 43.8 5,340 32.8 82,060 24.9 
			 Severe Learning Difficulty 10 1.5 30 1.8 330 2.0 4,860 1.5 
			 Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulty — — — — 100 0.6 1,440 0.4 
			 Behaviour, Emotional and Social Difficulties 120 17.8 270 18.7 3,010 18.5 61,000 18.5 
			 Speech, Language and Communication Needs 90 14.5 210 14.7 3,230 19.8 87,490 26.5 
			 Hearing Impairment 10 2.2 30 2.2 410 2.5 7,230 2.2 
			 Visual Impairment 10 1.9 30 1.9 240 1.5 4,110 1.2 
			 Multi-Sensory Impairment — — — — 20 0.1 500 0.2 
			 Physical Disability 30 4.6 60 4.0 620 3.8 12,990 3.9 
			 Autistic Spectrum Disorder 20 2.6 60 4.1 780 4.8 21,330 6.5 
			 Other Difficulty/Disability 10 2.2 30 2.0 680 4.2 13,200 4.0 
			 Total 640 100.0 1,410 100.0 16,290 100.0 329,680 100.0 
			          
			 State-funded secondary schools(1,2)         
			 Specific Learning Difficulty 40 8.5 120 8.9 2,020 15.6 45,110 16.3 
			 Moderate Learning Difficulty 220 43.1 510 39.3 3,900 30.3 67,840 24.5 
			 Severe Learning Difficulty 10 1.6 20 1.8 180 1.4 2,590 0.9 
			 Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulty 0 0.0 — — 10 0.1 280 0.1 
			 Behaviour, Emotional and Social Difficulties 120 24.0 330 25.0 3,680 28.6 83,940 30.3 
			 Speech, Language and Communication Needs 30 6.2 80 6.2 760 5.9 21,570 7.8 
			 Hearing Impairment 20 3.4 50 3.9 340 2.7 6,730 2.4 
			 Visual Impairment 10 1.2 20 1.5 170 1.3 3,650 1.3 
			 Multi-Sensory Impairment 0 0.0 — — 20 0.1 210 0.1 
			 Physical Disability 20 3.2 40 3.4 400 3.1 9,390 3.4 
			 Autistic Spectrum Disorder 30 6.2 100 7.8 570 4.4 18,160 6.6 
			 Other Difficulty/Disability 10 2.8 30 1.9 840 6.5 17,240 6.2 
			 Total 500 100.0 1,300 100.0 12,880 100.0 276,700 100.0 
			          
			 Maintained special schools(5)         
			 Specific Learning Difficulty — — — 0.7 40 0.9 930 1.1 
			 Moderate Learning Difficulty 40 18.8 80 18.9 930 19.7 18,380 21.5 
			 Severe Learning Difficulty 40 23.1 110 25.7 1,270 26.9 21,090 24.6 
			 Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulty 20 10.2 40 10.1 560 11.9 7,570 8.8 
			 Behaviour, Emotional and Social Difficulties 30 13.4 70 16.3 660 13.9 12,460 14.5 
			 Speech, Language and Communication Needs — 1.6 10 1.7 210 4.5 3,780 4.4 
			 Hearing Impairment 10 7.0 30 5.9 50 1.0 760 0.9 
			 Visual Impairment — — — — 20 0.3 500 0.6 
			 Multi-Sensory Impairment 0 0.0 0 0.0 10 0.2 150 0.2 
			 Physical Disability — 2.2 10 1.4 170 3.5 3,670 4.3 
			 Autistic Spectrum Disorder 40 21.5 80 18.9 790 16.7 15,850 18.5 
			 Other Difficulty/Disability — — — — 20 0.5 510 0.6 
			 Total 190 100.0 420 100.0 4,720 100.0 85,630 100.0 
			          
			 Non-maintained special schools(5)         
			 Specific Learning Difficulty 0 0.0 0 0.0 — 0.3 70 1.6 
			 Moderate Learning Difficulty 0 0.0 0 0.0 100 32.3 280 6.5 
			 Severe Learning Difficulty 0 0.0 — — 10 3.7 220 5.2 
			 Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulty 0 0.0 — — 10 2.0 180 4.2 
		
	
	
		
			 Behaviour, Emotional and Social Difficulties 0 0.0 — — 10 4.8 560 12.8 
			 Speech, Language and Communication Needs 0 0.0 — — — 1.4 540 12.4 
			 Hearing Impairment — — — — 10 2.0 790 18.3 
			 Visual Impairment — — — 13.6 20 6.8 300 6.9 
			 Multi-Sensory Impairment 0 0.0 0 0.0 — — 10 0.3 
			 Physical Disability 0 0.0 0 0.0 — — 420 9.7 
			 Autistic Spectrum Disorder — 50.0 10 63.6 140 45.9 900 20.8 
			 Other Difficulty/Disability 0 0.0 0 0.0 0 0.0 60 1.4 
			 Total 10 100.0 20 100.0 290 100.0 4,330 100.0 
			 (1) Includes middle schools as deemed. (2) Includes city technology colleges and academies. (3) Excludes general hospital schools. (4) Pupils with SEN status of School Action Plus and those with pupils with statements of SEN who provided information on their primary, and if appropriate, their secondary need. Information on primary need only is supplied in this table. (5 )Excludes dually registered pupils. (6) Includes pupils with missing or invalid postcodes. (7) Number of pupils by their main need expressed as a percentage of all pupils with SEN status of School Action Plus or with statements of SEN. Note: Totals may not appear to equal the sum of the component parts because numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10.

Special Educational Needs: Training

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what discussions his Department has had with Teach First on future levels of training for special educational needs teachers.

Nick Gibb: Following the publication of the SALT Review (Independent Review of Teacher Supply for Pupils with Severe, Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulties (SLD and PMLS)), called for by the previous administration, officials had informal conversations with a range of organisations including Teach First.
	The Training and Development Agency (TDA) for schools is now taking forward special educational needs training as part of ITT training courses.

Special Schools

Andy Burnham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many special schools he has visited since May 2010.

Tim Loughton: holding answer 8 February 2011
	The Secretary of State for Education (Michael Gove), has visited a number of schools since May 2010 but has not so far visited a special school. In January, the Secretary of State together with the Minister of State (Sarah Teather) and the Under-Secretary of State (Lord Hill of Oareford) hosted 52 special school head teachers at a Breakfast Briefing.

Sure Start: Finance

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much funding his Department has provided to Sure Start in each year since its inception; and how much he has allocated to the programme in each of the next five years.

Sarah Teather: The funding allocated to local authorities for Sure Start since its inception is shown in Table 1:
	
		
			 Table 1 
			 £  million 
			  Revenue Capital Total 
			 1998-99 140 0 140 
			 1999-2000 192 0 192 
			 2000-01 353 0 353 
			 2001-02 449 0 449 
			 2002-03 501 23 524 
			 2003-04 573 25 598 
			 2004-06(1) 1,588 354 1,943 
			 2006-07 1,048 270 1,318 
			 2007-08 1,143 543 1,686 
			 2008-09 1,327 306 1,633 
			 2009-10 1,555 416 1,971 
			 2010-11 1,839 367 2,207 
			 Total 10,707 2,304 13,011 
			 (1) In 2004 to 2006 local authorities received a two year allocation 
		
	
	The first Sure Start local programmes (SSLPs) were set up in 1999-2000. Prior to 2003-04 SSLP revenue funding was provided to local programmes not to local authorities and is therefore excluded from the table above. From 2003-04 it was paid to local authorities and is included in the table above. The most reliable data for the period prior to 2003 are for expenditure rather than allocation.
	The SSLP revenue expenditure for 1999-2003 is shown in Table 2:
	
		
			 Table 2 
			 £ million 
			  1999-2000 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 
			 SSLP revenue expenditure 3 33 105 174 
		
	
	The SSLPs received a single capital allocation for the period 1999 to 2006 of £479,638,144.
	From April 2011, Sure Start children's centres funding will be provided to local authorities via the Early Intervention Grant which is an un-ring-fenced and un- hypothecated grant for early intervention and preventative services that will total £2,222,555,697 in 2011-12 and £2,307,196,996 in 2012-13. Allocations beyond 2012-13 have not been announced.
	Sure Start children's centres are at the heart of the Government's vision for supporting families with young children and intervening early to prevent problems from becoming crises. Through the Early Intervention Grant, the Government have ensured there is enough money to retain a network of Sure Start children's centres, accessible to all but identifying and supporting families in greatest need. The Government have made it clear that it is for local authorities to determine the most effective use of the grant. Local authorities will have greater flexibility, but they remain under statutory duties under the Childcare Act 2006 to consult before opening, closing or significantly changing children's centres and to secure sufficient children's centres provision to meet local need, so far as is reasonably practicable.
	For details of final local authority EIG allocations please go to:
	http://media.education.gov.uk/assets/files/xls/e/early%20intervention%20grant%20-%20final%20allocations%20methodology.xls

Teachers: Qualifications

Nicholas Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what (a) process and (b) timetable he has put in place for allowing qualified further education lecturers to teach in school classrooms on the same basis as qualified school teachers; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Gibb: Following her review of vocational education, Professor Wolf recommended that Qualified Teacher Learning and Skills (QTLS) status should be recognised in schools for the delivery of vocational education. The Secretary of State for Education immediately accepted this recommendation.
	Professor Wolf’s recommendation will be implemented as soon as possible subject to statutory requirements and parliamentary process. We will consult fully on any amendments to the existing regulations.

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

Wines

Simon Kirby: To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, representing the House of Commons Commission, how much the House of Commons Service spent on wine in the last year for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

John Thurso: The House's Catering and Retail Service holds a stock of wine for resale, which is replenished as and when required, but does not generally purchase wine to be laid down for future consumption. The valuation at the end of 2009-10 was £45,717. In 2009-10 purchases for re-sale were £497,403. Some wine is purchased for official receptions, but the cost of wine for these cannot be separately identified.

CABINET OFFICE

Alcochol and Drugs: Death

Tracey Crouch: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many deaths in the Medway area were (a) alcohol and (b) drug related and how many of those who died were aged (i) under 18, (ii) 18 to 24, (iii) 25 to 40 and (iv) over 40 years old in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Stephen Penneck
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent questions asking how many deaths in the Medway area were (a) alcohol and (b) drug related and how many of those who died were aged (i) under 18, (ii) 18 to 24, (iii) 25 to 40 and (iv) over 40 years old in each of the last five years for which figures are available. (50049) .
	The tables attached provide the number of deaths where the underlying cause was (a) alcohol-related (Table 1) and (b) drug poisoning (Table 2), for persons aged (i) under 18, (ii) 18 to 24, (iii) 25 to 40 and (iv) over 40 years, in Medway unitary authority, for the years 2005 to 2009 (the latest year available).
	Figures for alcohol-related deaths in the UK, England and Wales, and government office regions are published annually on the National Statistics website at:
	www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/Product.asp?vlnk=14496
	Figures for deaths related to drug poisoning in England and Wales by sex, age, cause and substance involved are published annually on the National Statistics website at:
	www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/Product.asp?vlnk=11695
	
		
			 Table 1. Number of deaths where the underlying cause of death was alcohol-related, Medway unitary authority, 2005 to 2009  (1,2,3) 
			 Deaths (person) 
			 Age group 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 
			 Under 18 0 0 0 0 0 
			 18-24 0 0 0 0 0 
			 25-40 4 3 3 2 5 
			 Over 40 30 38 25 37 24 
			 Total 34 41 28 39 29 
			 (1) Cause of death was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10). The specific conditions which are included in the National Statistics definition of alcohol-related deaths, and their corresponding ICD-10 codes, are shown in Box 1.  (2) Based on boundaries as of 2011.  (3) Figures are for deaths registered in each calendar year. 
		
	
	
		
			 Box 1  :   National Statistics definition of alcohol-related deaths 
			 Cause of death ICD-10 codes 
			 Mental and behavioural disorders due to use of alcohol F10 
			 Degeneration of nervous system due to alcohol G31.2 
			 Alcoholic polyneuropathy G62.1 
			 Alcoholic cardiomyopathy I42.6 
			 Alcoholic gastritis K29.2 
			 Alcoholic liver disease K70 
			 Chronic hepatitis, not elsewhere classified K73 
			 Fibrosis and cirrhosis of liver (excluding Biliary cirrhosis) K74 (excluding K74.3-K74.5) 
			 Alcohol induced chronic pancreatitis K86.0 
		
	
	
		
			 Accidental poisoning by and exposure to alcohol X45 
			 Intentional self-poisoning by and exposure to alcohol X65 
			 Poisoning by and exposure to alcohol, undetermined intent Y15 
		
	
	
		
			 Table 2. Number of deaths where drug poisoning was the underlying cause of death, Medway unitary authority, 2005 to 2009  (1,2,3) 
			 Deaths (persons) 
			 Age group 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 
			 Under 18 0 0 0 0 0 
			 18-24 1 4 1 2 2 
			 25-40 9 6 8 6 9 
			 Over 40 4 2 4 3 9 
			 Total 14 12 13 11 20 
			 (1) Cause of death was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10). The ICD-10 codes for drug poisoning are shown in Box 2.  (2) Based on boundaries as of 2011.  (3) Figures are for deaths registered in each calendar year. 
		
	
	
		
			 Box 2: ICD-10 codes for deaths related to drug poisoning 
			 Cause of death ICD-10 codes 
			 Mental and behavioural disorders due to drug use (excluding alcohol and tobacco) F11-F16, F18-F19 
			 Accidental poisoning by drugs, medicaments and biological substances X40-X44 
			 Intentional self-poisoning by drugs, medicaments and biological substances X60-X64 
			 Assault by drugs, medicaments and biological substances X85 
			 Poisoning by drugs, medicaments and biological substances, undetermined intent Y10-Y14

Employment: Horticulture

Nicholas Dakin: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office whether he has made an estimate of the number of people aged 16 to 24 who are employed in the gardening industry; and whether he has assessed trends in the levels of employment of young people in the gardening industry in the last 10 years.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
	Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated March 2011
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether he has made a estimate of the number of people aged 16 to 24 who are employed in the gardening industry; and whether he has assessed trends in the levels of employment of young people in the gardening industry in the last 10 years. 49766
	The available information is provided in the attached table. The estimates are derived from the Labour Force Survey (LFS).
	
		
			 Number of people aged 16-24 who are employed in the gardening industry  (1)  , three months ending December, 2000 to 2010, United Kingdom, not seasonally adjusted 
			  Thousand 
			 2000 10 
			 2001 13 
			 2002 13 
			 2003 18 
			 2004 17 
			 2005 15 
			 2006 18 
			 2007 16 
			 2008 13 
			 2009 12 
			 2010 ****19 
			 (1) The gardening industry has been defined as: agriculture service activities; landscape gardening; landscape service activities and gardeners employed in private households. Guide to Quality: The Coefficient of Variation (CV) indicates the quality of an estimate, the smaller the CV value the higher the quality. The true value is likely to lie within +/- twice the CV—for example, for an estimate of 200 with a CV of 5% we would expect the population total to be within the range 180-220. Key: * 0 ≤ CV<5%—Statistical Robustness: Estimates are considered precise ** 5 ≤ CV <10%—Statistical Robustness: Estimates are considered reasonably precise *** 10 ≤ CV <20%—Statistical Robustness: Estimates are considered acceptable **** CV ≥ 20%—Statistical Robustness: Estimates are considered too unreliable for practical purposes CV = Coefficient of Variation Note: It should be noted that the above estimates exclude people in most types of communal establishment (e.g. hotels, boarding houses, hostels mobile home sites etc.) Source: Labour Force Survey

Government: Assets

Ben Gummer: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what action the Cabinet Office is taking to co-ordinate the sale of property assets across the government estate.

Francis Maude: As announced in Budget 2011, the Government, as part of the programme for the more efficient use and consolidation of their property holdings, continue to look at property disposals. Asset sales may be appropriate where the property is surplus and market conditions are right, and updates will be provided when specific transactions are envisaged.

Public Sector: Manpower

Robert Syms: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many people in Poole constituency are employed in (a) the public sector and (b) the private sector.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated March 2011
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking how many people in Poole constituency are employed in (a) the public sector and (b) the private sector. (50545)
	Public sector employment statistics for local areas can be calculated from the Annual Population Survey (APS). Individuals in the APS are classified to the public or private sector according to their responses to the survey.
	According to APS figures, in the 12 month period October 2009 to September 2010, in Poole constituency 29,000 were employed in the private sector and 10,000 were employed in the public sector.
	As with any sample survey, estimates from the APS are subject to a margin of uncertainty.
	National and local area estimates for many labour market statistics, including employment, unemployment and claimant count are available on the NOMIS website at:
	http://www.nomisweb.co.uk

Unemployment

Tracey Crouch: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent estimate he has made of the number of workless households in (a) Chatham and Aylesford constituency, (b) Medway Council area and (c) Tonbridge and Malling constituency.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
	Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated March 2011
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking what recent estimate has been made of the number of workless households, in (a) Chatham and Aylesford constituency, (b) Medway Council area, and (c) Tonbridge and Malling constituency (50048).
	The figures requested come from the Annual Population Survey (APS) household datasets. The latest data currently available is for 2009. The attached table shows estimates for Chatham and Aylesford constituency and Medway. Due to the specific nature of your request it is not possible to provide reliable estimates for Tonbridge and Malling constituency because of small sample sizes.
	As with any sample survey, estimates from the APS are subject to a margin of uncertainty. This is captured in a confidence interval, defined by lower and upper bounds, such that the interval formed between the bounds would contain the true value for 95% of all possible samples.
	
		
			 Table 1: Number of workless households  (1)   in Chatham and Aylesford constituency, and Medway 
			 Thousand 
			  Estimate Lower bound  (2) Upper bound  (2) 
			 January to December 2009 6 4 8 
			  17 14 20 
			 (1) Households containing at least one person aged 16 to 64, where all individuals aged 16 or over are not in employment. (2) 95% confidence interval. Source: APS household dataset

HEALTH

Allergies: Health Services

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether his Department is taking steps to increase the number of allergy specialists in the NHS.

Paul Burstow: It is for local commissioners to assess the priorities for developing local services to meet the needs of their populations. The Department will then agree with strategic health authorities and NHS Employers the number of training posts needed to meet estimated future demand in each specialty. In the case of allergy services, decisions by local commissioners will be informed by the outcomes of a pilot study in NHS North West of the concept of a multi-disciplinary “allergy centre” as advocated in the 2007 report by the House of Lords Science and Technology Committee.

Care Homes

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will estimate the effect of the reduction in funding for local authorities on the cost to patients of placements with independent social care providers; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Burstow: The spending review recognised the importance of social care in protecting most vulnerable in society. In recognition of the pressures on the social care system in a challenging local government settlement, the coalition Government have allocated an additional £2 billion by 2014-15 to support the delivery of social care. This means, with an ambitious programme of efficiency, that there is enough funding available both to protect people’s access to services and deliver new approaches to improve quality and outcomes.
	Local authorities are responsible for decisions on how to allocate their resources, and the contracts that they negotiate with independent care providers. The Department does not collect information on these contracts.

Cataracts: Waiting Lists

Frank Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether his Department has a target for the treatment of cataract patients within three months of referral.

Simon Burns: There is no specific target for the treatment of cataract patients. The right to start consultant-led treatment, including consultant-led cataract treatment, within maximum waiting times remains in the NHS Constitution. As set out in the NHS Operating Framework for 2011-12, commissioners should ensure that waiting times performance does not deteriorate and where possible improves during 2011-12.

Departmental Public Opinion

Graeme Morrice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what expenditure has been incurred by his Department on (a) opinion polling, (b) focus groups and (c) other forms of market research in each month since 1 January 2010; what surveys were commissioned; what the purpose was of each survey; and if he will publish the findings.

Simon Burns: A list of expenditure incurred by Department on opinion polling, focus groups and other forms of market research in each month since 1 January 2010; what surveys were commissioned; and what the purpose was of each survey, could be provided only at disproportionate cost, as the Department does not hold this information centrally.

Health Services: Walsall

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will estimate the change in the number of staff employed by Walsall primary care trust or its successor as a result of implementation of proposed changes to the NHS.

Simon Burns: The estimated staff redundancy and transfer rates were published in the impact assessment alongside the current Health and Social Care Bill.
	The Department has not estimated a local breakdown of these figures, as this will depend on local decisions.
	The impact assessment is available at:
	www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsLegislation/DH_123583
	A copy has already been placed in the Library.

Incinerators: Health Hazards

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  with reference to the answer to the then hon. Member for Chesterfield of 30 November 2009, Official Report, column 539W, on incinerators: health hazards, whether his Department has assessed the effect on public health of emissions from functioning incinerators since the date of that answer;
	(2)  what research his Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on the effects on public health of emissions from incinerators since 2008.

Anne Milton: The Department has not assessed the effect on public health of emissions from incinerators since the date of the written answer in November 2009, nor has it commissioned or evaluated research into the effects on public health of emissions from incinerators since 2008. The Health Protection Agency (HPA) published a report of its review of the latest scientific evidence on the health effects of modern municipal waste incinerators in September 2009. The report concludes that while it is not possible to rule adverse health effects out completely, any potential damage from modern, well run and regulated incinerators is likely to be so small that it would be undetectable. The HPA report also advises that since any possible health effects are likely to be very small, if detectable, studies of public health around modern, well managed municipal waste incinerators would yield no useful information.

Macular Degeneration: Drugs

Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects to publish the results of the IVAN trial of alternative treatments for the inhibition of vascular endothelial growth factor in age-related choriodal neovascularisation funded by his Department.

Simon Burns: Year one follow-up findings are expected in late 2011 or early 2012. The final report of the trial is expected to be published in 2014.

Medical Records: Living Wills

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress is being made on amendments to the NHS Summary Care Record System that will enable the addition of living wills and Lasting Powers of Attorney to a record; and whether such amendments will enable supporting information concerning a patient's wishes to be included on their records.

Simon Burns: The purpose of the summary care record (SCR) is to provide the minimal information required to support safe care in urgent and emergency situations.
	The main recommendation of a review of the content of the SCR, which was led by Sir Bruce Keogh and reported in October 2010, was that the core information should only include a patient's medications, allergies, and adverse reactions. Any additional information beyond this should only be added to the SCR with the explicit consent of the patient.
	We firmly believe that it is for patients to decide if any additional information should be included in their SCR.
	Supported by appropriate professionals, patients wanting to add information pertaining to their wishes as expressed in living wills or a lasting power of attorney are already free to do so.

Medical Treatments Abroad

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS patients were treated overseas in each country for each type of condition in each of the last three years; and what the cost to the NHS of such treatment was.

Anne Milton: To identify details of the number of national health service patients treated for each type of condition, in each overseas country, and the cost of each treatment, in each of the last three years would incur disproportionate cost.

Monitor

Graeme Morrice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his estimate is of (a) levels of expenditure by Monitor on staff and (b) the number of staff to be employed by Monitor in each of the next five years.

Simon Burns: We do not currently hold information centrally on estimated numbers of staff for Monitor, and its associated expenditure on staff, in each of the next five years. The Government's estimate of Monitor's future annual budget was set out in the impact assessment published alongside the Health and Social Care Bill (19 January 2011) and quoted a figure of £72 million, by 2015-16.
	The Department has continued to refine these estimates since the impact assessment was published, and I refer the hon. Member to the written answer I gave the hon. Member for Easington (Grahame M. Morris) on 8 February 2011, Official Report, column 167W.

NHS: Competition

Graeme Morrice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the cost to his Department of regulating health competition in each category of expenditure in each of the next five years.

Simon Burns: The impact assessment, published alongside the Health and Social Care Bill, estimates the annual running costs of Monitor at £72 million by 2015-16. At this stage, we do not hold information centrally on estimated annual running costs for Monitor, or an estimated breakdown of expenditure, for each of the next five years. The Bill proposes that Monitor would be responsible for regulating competition in relation to health care services. It would be for Monitor to decide how to prioritise the use of its resources in pursuit of its overarching duty to protect and promote patients’ interests. Monitor would be accountable to Parliament for its expenditure and would be expected to demonstrate value for money through its annual reports.

NHS: Expenditure

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will estimate the outturn expenditure of the NHS in England in each of the last five financial years on a basis directly comparable with the estimate he has made for its outturn expenditure in 2010-11.

Simon Burns: The following table sets out the last five years' expenditure on a basis that is directly comparable to the estimate of the Department's latest forecast outturn of expenditure that was included in the 2011 Budget report.
	
		
			 Outturn (£ billion) 
			  2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11  (1) 
			 NHS resource 72.8 76.7 82.3 88.8 95.6 99.5 
			 Depreciation -0.5 -1.0 -0.7 -1.0 -1.2 -1.1 
			 NHS resource minus depreciation 72.3 75.7 81.6 87.8 94.4 98.4 
			 NHS capital 2.1 2.9 3.8 4.2 5.0 4.5 
			 Total NHS 74.4 78.6 85.4 92.0 99.4 102.9 
			 (1) Estimated outturn 
		
	
	The figures for 2005-06 to 2009-10 are taken from the Core Tables on page 125 of the Department of Health's 2009-10 Resource Account (HC208).
	The figures provided are after having adjusted for the technical classification changes arising from the implementation of the Alignment (or ‘Clear Line of Sight’) legislation—the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010.
	The 2010-11 figure is the estimated NHS outturn for 2010-11 that was published on page 48 of the 2011 Budget (HC836).
	The estimated outturn for 2010-11 includes a forecast underspend of £0.65 billion. The Department's underspend for 2009-10 was £1.6 billion.(2)
	(2 )The 2009-10 underspend figure is based upon the previous classification method.

NHS: Finance

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what allocations were included in the estimate for NHS (a) Resource and (b) Capital Departmental Expenditure limits for 2010-11 in the June 2010 Budget but not in the limits in the 2010 comprehensive spending review; and what the monetary value is of each such allocation.

Simon Burns: The question refers to the difference in figures quoted in the June 2010 Budget and in the 2010 comprehensive spending review. The differences are due to categorisation and financial currency of the numbers.
	Table 2.2 in June Budget 2010 reports figures for 2010-11 of £101.5 billion for Health of which NHS England is £99.5 billion on Resource Departmental Expenditure Limit (DEL). The difference in figures is Personal Social Services (PSS) centrally funded services, PSS grants and Food Standards Agency (FSA). Both figures included depreciation of £1.1 billion.
	The baseline 2010-11 figure in Spending Review Statistical Annex Table A5 of £98.7 billion excludes depreciation (£1.1 billion), but includes £0.3 billion of additions to the NHS baseline by HM Treasury to reverse inter-departmental transfers of funding—this procedure is followed to avoid funding either not being counted or counted twice in spending review bids.
	PSS and FSA expenditure is shown separate to NHS funding in the spending review tables.
	Table 2.2 in June Budget 2010 reports figures for 2010-11 of £4.9 billion for Health of which NHS England is £4.7 billion on capital DEL. The difference in figures is capital funding for Personal Social Services.
	The baseline 2010-11 figure in Spending Review Statistical Annex Table A6 of £5.1 billion, is higher than the £4.7 billion again due to HM Treasury action to reverse inter-departmental transfers of funding.

Surgery

Frank Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many internal operations were carried out on NHS patients in each year since 1996-97.

Simon Burns: The information is not held in the format requested. Hospital Episodes Statistics (HES) data do not have categories of ‘internal operations’. However, we have provided a count of finished consultant episodes (FCEs) with a named main procedure or intervention for the years 1996-97 to 2009-10. It should be noted that these figures do not represent the number of patients as a person may have more than one procedure or intervention within a given year.
	Activity in English national health service hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Total FCEs 
			 1996-97 5,911,350 
			 1997-98 5,908,250 
		
	
	
		
			 1998-99 6,468,404 
			 1999-2000 6,530,852 
			 2000-01 6,509,425 
			 2001-02 6,435,022 
			 2002-03 6,612,582 
			 2003-04 6,772,074 
			 2004-05 6,847,589 
			 2005-06 7,215,286 
			 2006-07 7,888,074 
			 2007-08 8,606,493 
			 2008-09 9,274,423 
			 2009-10 9,747,584 
			 Notes: 1. A finished consultant episode (FCE) is a continuous period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FCEs are counted against the year in which they end. Figures do not represent the number of different patients, as a person may have more than one episode of care within the same stay in hospital or in different stays in the same year. 2. Main procedure or intervention—The first recorded procedure or intervention in each episode, usually the most resource intensive procedure or intervention performed during the episode. It is appropriate to use main procedure when looking at admission details, (eg time waited), but a more complete count of episodes with a particular procedure is obtained by looking at the main and the secondary procedures. 3. Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. Changes to the figures over time need to be interpreted in the context of improvements in data quality and coverage (particularly in earlier years), improvements in coverage of independent sector activity (particularly from 2006-07) and changes in NHS practice. For example, apparent reductions in activity may be due to a number of procedures which may now be undertaken in outpatient settings and so no longer include in admitted patient HES data.  4. HES are compiled from data sent by more than 300 NHS trusts and primary care trusts in England and from some independent sector organisations for activity commissioned by the English NHS. The NHS Information Centre for health and social care liaises closely with these organisations to encourage submission of complete and valid data and seeks to minimise inaccuracies. While this brings about improvement over time, some shortcomings remain. Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES); Outpatients, The NHS Information Centre for health and social care

Tattooing

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 16 March 2011, Official Report, column 452W, on tattoos, whether it is his Department's policy to fund the removal of tattoos on the NHS.

Anne Milton: Tattoo removal may be available on the national health service, according to local primary care trust policies, if a clinician considers that an individual patient's health requires it.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Botswana: Charities

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will provide advice to UK charities operating in Botswana on the use of terminology in publications that does not cause offence to sections of the local population.

Stephen O'Brien: The Department of International Development is willing to provide advice on terminology and other issues, where it is appropriate to do so, to UK charities funded by the Department.

Developing Countries: Agriculture

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what proportion of his Department's commitment to agriculture and food security made at the G8 L'Aquila summit has been disbursed to date; and what plans his Department has for the use of the remaining funds before 2012.

Stephen O'Brien: The Department for International Development (DFID) is on track to meet its commitments on global food security and agriculture made at the 2009 L'Aquila summit. In the first year of this pledge, DFID had disbursed 32% of its total commitment of £1.1 billion.
	The recent bilateral and multilateral aid reviews have set out the results which DFID will deliver in the next four years. In summary, it is envisaged that we will stop 10 million more children going hungry and ensure a further four million people have enough food throughout the year. We anticipate working on food security in a small number of countries including Ethiopia, (South) Sudan, Zimbabwe and Burma. We will also continue to support multilateral agencies with a mandate on food and nutritional security. Agriculture will continue to be a major focus for DFID's Research and Evidence Division, which has increased its support for agriculture by 60% over the last three years.

Developing Countries: Tuberculosis

Nicholas Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment his Department has made of the effects on its provision of projects to (a) treat and (b) prevent maternal tuberculosis of the absence of an indicator for the incidence of maternal tuberculosis in the maternal health strategy.

Stephen O'Brien: The Department for International Development (DFID) supports national health plans and where countries put in place specific systems to monitor TB, we will support this. Where TB is a high risk and common complication of pregnancy, we would expect to invest in that. The monitoring and evaluation framework in the “Choices for women” Framework for Results cannot be all-inclusive given the many aspects of reproductive, maternal and newborn health that we expect to support in the countries where we work. We must balance our need for accurate data to measure progress whilst not creating additional reporting burdens for countries or parallel monitoring systems.
	The framework is clear that strong health systems are needed to deliver reproductive, maternal and newborn health services and that the expansion of coverage of the proven interventions and services that women and newborns need, particularly under the “continuum of care” is a priority. This includes screening for TB.

Sudan: Israel

Guto Bebb: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether he has had discussions with his Israeli counterpart on the provision of assistance by Israel to refugees from Sudan.

Andrew Mitchell: We have held no discussions with the Government of Israel on this matter.